All cross-border social media companies in Vietnam must disclose contact information for account operators with more than 10,000 followers or subscribers, according to a draft decree from the Ministry of Information and Communications.
While the directive applies to local social media operators such as Zalo, a homegrown social service, most livestream broadcasts are streamed on foreign platforms.
"The government intends to restrict cyberspace to crack down on potentially dangerous social media accounts that could affect social instability," Duong Quoc Chinh, a Hanoi-based political analyst, told Nikkei Asia.
According to the ministry, individuals are increasingly using platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok to spread their own news or spread false information.
The draft, which has yet to be finalized, compels social media companies to ban or remove flagged content within 24 hours after receiving "justified" requests from Vietnamese people and groups.
If the rule goes into effect, more online content labeled false news by the government is likely to come under scrutiny.
"Many individuals and organizations take advantage of social media to perform press activities, and [of] online streaming to provide false information," the Ministry of Information and Communications said in a document attached to the draft decree.
The government has pledged to bring action against online information that "insults the reputation and dignity of other organizations and individuals."
Reuters reported last week that social media "influencers" are more likely to be soldiers than celebrities, as part of Force 47, which is charged with creating, moderating and posting on pro-state Facebook groups in order to correct "wrong views" online.
