Digital piracy poses a significant risk to Vietnam's digital economy, despite the general awareness among users
In the rapidly expanding digital ecosystem of Vietnam, the government and content providers are taking decisive action to combat digital piracy. A combination of technology, enforcement, education, and cross-border cooperation is proving effective in addressing both the technical means of piracy and the underlying user behaviors and legal challenges.
Technology plays a critical role in this fight, with advanced protective measures such as AI-powered systems like Sigma Multi-DRM and Sigma Active Observer. These tools, employed by leading Vietnamese pay-TV platforms, have demonstrated exceptional results in reducing piracy. Encryption and content protection technologies raise the technical barriers for piracy, although challenges remain from content recording by legitimate account holders.
Enforcement efforts involve coordinated government action to block or take down thousands of infringing piracy websites, significantly reducing illegal traffic. Vietnam has actively tracked and blocked piracy sites, learning from Indonesia's experience where aggressive site blocking led to shifts toward legal platforms. Collaboration between law enforcement agencies such as the Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Information and Communications, and local police helps dismantle piracy operations. However, enforcement alone is insufficient because enforcement gaps and weak penalties sometimes allow new piracy operations to emerge quickly.
Education is essential in this battle, as many users access pirated content without understanding the legal implications or the risks involved. Surveys reveal that although many Vietnamese users are willing to pay for content if piracy sites are blocked, a substantial percentage still accesses illegal content due to mindset and habit. Raising awareness and changing attitudes about the value of legal content consumption and the consequences of piracy is critical for long-term success.
Cross-border cooperation can enhance enforcement and information sharing to tackle piracy that often originates from and spreads beyond national borders. While the search results emphasize Vietnam’s collaboration locally, the principle of cross-border cooperation includes sharing intelligence, harmonizing legal frameworks, and joint actions against piracy networks that operate regionally, mirroring successful international examples in other domains. Such cooperation can also address the global nature of piracy distribution and payment systems.
In summary, the effective fight against digital piracy in Vietnam’s expanding digital environment requires:
- Deployment of AI and encryption technology to secure digital content against sophisticated breaches.
- Strong, coordinated legal enforcement to block piracy websites and dismantle networks.
- Public education campaigns to shift user behavior toward legal content consumption and awareness of associated risks.
- Regional and international cooperation to combat piracy networks that transcend borders.
Each component addresses different facets of the piracy problem, and their integration maximizes impact by simultaneously reducing supply, deterring illegal access, and transforming demand within Vietnam’s digital economy.
Despite these efforts, piracy remains a significant issue in Vietnam. In 2022, the country is estimated to have lost nearly US$350 million due to digital piracy. 56% of surveyed users admitted to accessing pirated digital content within the past 12 months, with illegal streaming platforms posing a particularly high risk of malware infection (21.7 times more likely than legal sites).
Content providers like VTV Digital are also taking action against piracy. VTV Digital's response to copyright infringement includes the adoption of technologies such as watermarking, geo-blocking, encryption, access detection, user authentication, and digital evidence storage. VTV Digital's platform VTVGo has over 50 million app installs and plans to expand paid channels from 2025.
Experts agree that digital piracy cannot be stopped by technical or legal means alone, and a combination of technology, enforcement, education, and cross-border cooperation is essential to protect copyrighted content in Vietnam's growing digital ecosystem. Common forms of piracy in Vietnam include using Android boxes, visiting illegal streaming websites and apps, and sharing infringing content via social media or messaging platforms.
As the digital landscape continues to evolve, so too will the strategies employed to combat digital piracy. With a commitment to technology, enforcement, education, and cross-border cooperation, Vietnam is well-positioned to protect its digital content and support its growing digital economy.
- To strengthen the fight against digital piracy, the integration of AI and encryption technology is crucial in securing digital content against advanced breaches.
- Collaboration between law enforcement agencies and cross-border cooperation is necessary to combat piracy networks that operate beyond national borders.
- Public education campaigns are essential for shifting user behavior towards legal content consumption and raising awareness about the risks associated with piracy.
- Enforcement efforts are important in blocking piracy websites, dismantling networks, and reducing illegal traffic, but enforcement alone is insufficient due to gaps and weak penalties.
- A substantial percentage of Vietnamese users continue to access illegal content due to mindset and habits, underscoring the importance of education in addressing digital piracy.
