(VOVWORLD) - “Created by Vietnam, designed by Vietnam, and produced in Vietnam” is a major guideline that the Vietnamese government aims to arouse internal resources to develop the nation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Launched in May 2019, the initiative has brought in new vitality, positive energy, highlighted the importance of tech firms and digital technology products for national development, especially the protection of national digital sovereignty in cyberspace.
 Facebook is the most popular social media platform in Vietnam. (Photo: Reuters) |
Most people think that protecting national sovereignty means to defend national territory and territorial waters. However, in today’s world where the physical flow coexists with the flow of data, national sovereignty in cyber space is also a matter of concern.
With a population of 97.3 million, including 70% of internet users, Vietnam is a potential market for digital platform providers.
According to We Are Social 2022, Facebook is the most popular social media platform in Vietnam with 93.8% of internet users on it. More than 60% of Vietnamese people are using Messenger, the messaging tool, TikTok, the video sharing social network, and Instagram, the image sharing network.
The strong growth of digital platforms is entailing new challenges: national security can become the target of infiltration or intelligence gathering by hacker groups. The websites of individuals, businesses, and state agencies will no longer be safe.
Nguyen Minh Chinh, Director of the Department of Cyber Security and High-tech Crime Prevention, Ministry of Public Security, said, “The current challenge is the cyber space is being used by reactionary hostile forces and criminals to conduct activities that infringe upon our national security and social order and safety, especially propaganda activities against the regime, inciting riots to carry out ‘color revolutions’, ‘street revolutions’ to change the political regime in Vietnam. There have been many cyber-attacks of large scale and high intensity, with increasingly dangerous nature and levels, directly threatening national security and social order and safety.”
In recent years, Vietnam has attached great importance to national security in cyber space.
The promulgation of the Law on Cyber security and the amendments to the Law on National Defense demonstrate strong steps taken by the Party and State of Vietnam in regards to protecting national sovereignty in digital space.
More than one year after the Prime Minister approved the "National Digital Transformation Program until 2025 with an orientation to 2030", the transformation process has seen remarkable achievements, especially improvements in the awareness of digital transformation in state agencies, businesses, and the people.
Over the past two years, Vietnamese firms have developed and deployed IT infrastructure, platforms, products, and services.
Particularly, the awareness of IT application, cyber security protection, and national sovereignty protection in each agency, enterprise or organization has significantly improved.
Nguyen Thanh Hung, Chairman of the Vietnam Information Security Association, said, “The capacity to ensure national information security should be based on the products, services, and solutions in a safe cyber security ecosystem developed by Vietnamese businesses.”
“The extremely important foundation should readily ensure safety and cyber security for the national digital transformation. One more important thing is that it can connect cyber security providers, users of the services and products, and policy-making agencies,” said Hung.
Vietnam has, to date, mastered about 90% of the ecosystem of cyber security products serving Party and State agencies, and is likely to be among few countries to master 100% of the ecosystem of cyber security products.
 Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung (Photo: vneconomy.vn) |
Vietnam is making efforts to build a team of experts on network safety and security to ensure cyber security at the highest level, said Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung.
Hung underlined the need to set up a core team of experts on cyber safety and security, adding, “The team should mainly be in businesses, but when necessary, they can easily be mobilized. It’s also essential to disseminate the information on ensuring cyber safety and security but the dissemination should cost less and be easily understandable. Businesses must diversify ways to disseminate the information to all individuals and organizations.”
“The Ministry of Information and Communications should encourage cyber security service providers to have new approaches in terms of technology, products and marketing to accelerate the popularization of cyber security products and services to all individuals and organizations.”
Currently, the cloud computing platforms developed by Vietnamese firms have met the technical requirements to serve e-government and e-governance in the country.
The platforms include VNPT cloud, Viettel cloud, VNG cloud, Bizfly cloud, and CMC cloud whose firms are supported by the Government and given certificates as encouragement to accompany national digital transformation.