The Vietnamese government is set to introduce new measures which will make it mandatory for social media users to verify their identity.

According to the state-run Voice of Vietnam (VOV) newspaper, the new measure will be a part of the Telecommunications Law Amendment which will be issued by the end of the year. The law will enable law enforcement agencies to track down offenders using social media to break the law, with scams rife on social media platforms.

The VOV have framed the measures as an attempt to rein in online scams, but critics fear that the measure could be used as an extension of the Vietnamese government’s intolerance of dissent. Articles 117 and 331 of the 2015 Criminal Code historically have been used to crack down on human rights defenders, journalists, religious practitioners and others who criticise the government or the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam. Enforced verification of social media users could be used to also clamp down on dissidents and whistle blowers.

Speaking to the paper, information deputy minister Nguyen Thanh Lam said: "There are times the authorities can identify social media account holders that violate the laws but cannot track them down because those criminals use cross-border applications.

"Unverified accounts, no matter on local or foreign platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, will be dealt with."

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