DECREE NO. 28/2009/ND-CP ON ADMINISTRATIVE SANCTIONS FOR VIOLATIONS IN THE MANAGEMENT, PROVISION AND USE OF INTERNET SERVICES AND ELECTRONIC INFORMATION ON THE INTERNET

DECREE

Regulations on Administrative Sanctions for Violations in Management, Provision, and Use of Internet Services and Electronic Information on the Internet

__________________________________________

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to the Law on Information Technology dated June 29, 2006;

Based on the Press Law dated December 28, 1989, and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Press Law dated June 12, 1999;

Based on the Publishing Law dated December 14, 2004, and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Publishing Law dated June 3, 2008;

Based on the Ordinance on Posts and Telecommunications dated May 25, 2002;

Based on the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations dated July 2, 2002, and the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations dated April 2, 2008;

Considering the proposal of the Minister of Information and Communications,

DECREE:

Chapter 1.

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

1. This Decree stipulates acts of violation, forms, levels of sanctions, and the authority to impose administrative sanctions in the management, provision, and use of Internet services and electronic information on the Internet.

2. Administrative violations in the activities of managing, providing, and using Internet services and electronic information on the Internet (hereinafter referred to as administrative violations related to the Internet) are intentional or negligent acts of individuals, agencies, organizations (hereinafter collectively referred to as individuals, organizations) that violate the regulations of the law on state management in the activities of managing, providing, and using Internet services and electronic information on the Internet, which are not criminal offenses and according to the law must be subject to administrative sanctions.

3. Acts of administrative violations in the provision or use of specialized application services on the Internet shall be applied in accordance with the provisions of the law on administrative sanctions in the field of state management relevant to such activities.

Article 2. Applicability

1. Vietnamese organizations and individuals committing administrative violations related to the Internet shall be sanctioned in accordance with this Decree.

Foreign organizations and individuals committing administrative violations related to the Internet within the territory, exclusive economic zone, and continental shelf of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam shall be subject to administrative sanctions like Vietnamese organizations and individuals.

2. Minors committing administrative violations related to the Internet shall be handled in accordance with point a, Clause 1, Article 6 and Article 7 of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations in 2002.

Article 3. Principles of Imposition of Sanctions

The principles of imposing administrative sanctions for violations related to the Internet shall be implemented in accordance with Article 3 of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations, Article 3 and Article 4 of Decision No. 128/2008/NĐ-CP dated December 16, 2008 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations in 2002 and the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations in 2008.

Article 4. Time Limit for Imposing Administrative Sanctions

1. The time limit for imposing administrative sanctions for violations related to the Internet is one year, counted from the date the violation was committed.

For violations concerning the regulation on service charges, fees, and surcharges, the time limit for imposing administrative sanctions is two years, counted from the date the violation was committed.

2. For individuals who have been indicted, prosecuted, or have a decision to bring a case of violation related to the Internet to trial under criminal procedure, but subsequently have a decision to terminate the investigation or close the case, if the act of violation has signs of administrative violation, they shall be subject to administrative sanctions; within three days from the date of issuing the decision to terminate the investigation or close the case, the person issuing the decision must send the decision to the competent authority to impose sanctions; in this case, the time limit for imposing administrative sanctions is three months, counted from the date the competent authority to impose sanctions receives the decision to terminate and the case file.

3. Beyond the time limits specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article, no sanctions shall be imposed, but measures to remedy consequences as provided for in Clause 3 of Article 5 of this Decree shall still be applied.

4. Within the time limits specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article, if organizations or individuals commit new acts of administrative violation in the same field as previously violated or intentionally evade or obstruct the imposition of sanctions, the time limit for imposing administrative sanctions shall be counted from the date of committing the new act of administrative violation or from the date of ceasing the act of evading or obstructing the imposition of sanctions.

Article 5. Forms of administrative penalties for violations related to the Internet and measures to remedy consequences.

1. For each act of administrative violation, the violating organization or individual must bear one of the following main forms of administrative sanction:

a) Warning;

b) Fine.

2. Depending on the nature and degree of violation, organizations and individuals committing administrative offenses may also be subject to one or more of the following supplementary forms of punishment:

a) Revocation of the right to use licenses or certificates of practice for a limited or unlimited period.

b) Confiscation of objects and means used to commit administrative violations.

3. In addition to the main forms of punishment and supplementary punishments prescribed in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of this Article, organizations and individuals committing administrative offenses may also be subject to one or more of the following measures to remedy consequences:

a) Compelling restoration to the original state that was altered due to the administrative offense.

b) Compelling removal from the territory of Vietnam or compelling re-exportation of goods, items, or means related to administrative offenses concerning the Internet.

c) Compelling destruction of items or deletion of harmful electronic information content on the Internet that harms mental health, physical health, or affects social customs and traditions.

d) Compelling recovery or compelling repayment of improperly collected funds or recovery of dispersed objects or means.

đ) Compelling recovery of domain names, Internet addresses, network numbers.

4. Foreign nationals committing administrative offenses may also be punished with deportation. Deportation can be applied as a main form of punishment or supplementary punishment in specific cases.

Chapter 2.

For the act of trading counterfeit goods without utility or function as stipulated in Clause 1, Article 4 of this Decree, the fine shall be as follows:

Article 6. Violations of regulations on licenses

1. A fine of VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 for failing to apply for renewal when any of the following licenses are lost or damaged:

a) Internet service provision license;

b) License for establishing a private Internet network;

c) License for establishing an integrated electronic information website;

d) License for publishing an online newspaper.

2. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 for using a license beyond its validity period by up to 30 days as specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

3. A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for altering the content of a license through repair, erasure, or false declaration of information to obtain any of the licenses specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

4. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for establishing an integrated electronic information website without a license or using a license beyond its validity period by over 30 days.

5. A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for operating a private Internet network without a license or using a license beyond its validity period by over 30 days.

6. A fine of from VND 50,000,000 to VND 70,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Establishing a system of equipment to provide Internet services to the public without a license or using an Internet service provision license beyond its validity period by over 30 days.

b) Publishing an online newspaper without a license or using a license beyond its validity period by over 30 days.

7. Additional forms of administrative sanction:

a) Revoking the right to use a license indefinitely for violations stipulated in Clause 3 of this Article.

b) Confiscating objects and means used to commit administrative offenses stipulated in Clause 4, Clause 5, and Clause 6 of this Article.

8. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compelling recovery of domain names for violations stipulated in Clause 4, point b Clause 6 of this Article.

Article 7. Violations of regulations on establishing private Internet networks

1. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Failing to comply with the provisions in the license for establishing a private Internet network that requires licensing.

b) Providing Internet services to organizations and individuals who are not members of a private Internet network.

2. A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the following acts:

a) Failing to stop providing Internet services to members of a private Internet network upon discovering that they violate prohibited acts in the management, provision, and use of Internet services and electronic information on the Internet or according to the request of competent state authorities.

b) Establishing an Internet relay station for a private Internet network without requiring a license.

3. A fine of from VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts:

a) Directly connecting private Internet networks.

b) An Internet relay station directly connecting two private Internet networks.

4. Additional forms of administrative punishment:

Confiscating objects and means used to commit administrative offenses stipulated in point b Clause 2 and Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 8. Violations of regulations on providing Internet services

1. A fine of from five million to ten million Vietnamese dong shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Cease or temporarily cease providing Internet services without prior notice to service users, except in cases of force majeure;

b) Refuse to provide Internet services without justifiable reasons;

c) Discriminate between Internet service providers when providing telecommunications transmission lines or internal loop splitting;

2. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the following acts:

a) Fail to provide telecommunications transmission lines or internal loop splitting for Internet service providers upon request without justifiable reasons;

b) Fail to issue model contracts for uniform implementation throughout the enterprise;

c) Fail to terminate Internet service provision upon written request from competent state authorities;

d) Not have a website using the national domain name “.vn” for transactions with customers when providing Internet telephone services;

3. A fine of from VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Fail to establish a connection transmission line to the national Internet transit station for Internet service providers who are also network infrastructure providers;

b) Act as an agent for foreign Internet telephone service providers;

c) Announce the official start date of service provision and service rollout plans to the Ministry of Information and Communications at incorrect times;

4. Imposing a fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Establishing equipment systems to provide public Internet services not in accordance with the provisions of the license;

b) Implementing international Internet traffic transit without permission from the Ministry of Information and Communications;

c) Blocking domestic information entering or exiting their network through the national Internet transit station (VNIX) except for prohibited services;

d) Providing types of Internet telephone services not in accordance with regulations;

đ) Providing Internet telephone services without billing systems or customer database management systems or service management systems located in Vietnam;

e) Failing to announce the official start date of service provision and service rollout plans to the Ministry of Information and Communications;

5. Additional forms of punishment:

Seizing objects and means used to commit administrative violations stipulated in point a, Clause 3 and point a, Clause 4 of this Article;

6. Measures to remedy consequences:

Ordering restoration to the original condition before it was changed due to administrative violations for violations stipulated in point a, Clause 1 and point c, Clause 4 of this Article;

Article 9. Violations of regulations on using Internet services

1. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Using or guiding others to use Internet services prohibited by law;

b) Service users reselling Internet services;

2. Acts strictly prohibited under the Decree on managing, providing, and using Internet services and electronic information on the Internet shall be punished according to the Government's Decree on administrative penalties in the field of information technology;

3. Additional forms of punishment:

Seizing objects and means used to commit administrative violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article;

Article 10. Violations of regulations on Internet agency operations

1. Warning or imposing a fine of VND 200,000 to VND 500,000 for failing to display or inadequately display usage rules for Internet services at the service provision location as prescribed;

2. Imposing a fine of VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Failing to meet fire prevention, firefighting, and environmental hygiene standards to ensure safety and health for service users;

b) Internet equipment systems not meeting requirements for ensuring information security and cybersecurity as prescribed;

c) Establishing Internet equipment systems outside the registered locations in contracts for Internet agency operations;

d) Allowing customers to use services outside designated hours;

3. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Permitting service users to violate strictly prohibited acts in managing, providing, and using Internet services and electronic information on the Internet;

b) Failing to sign agency contracts with organizations or individuals providing Internet services to non-billing users.

Article 11. Violations of regulations on using Internet domain names

1. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of using a top-level domain other than ".vn" without notification or with inaccurate information, or changing information without notifying the Ministry of Information and Communications as prescribed; inaccurately declaring or failing to update information when there is a change in name or contact address for organizations, or name, contact address, identity card number, or passport number for individuals registering and using the ".vn" domain.

2. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the following acts:

a) The official electronic information portal of Party and State agencies, except for representative offices of Vietnam abroad, not using the national domain name ".vn" or not storing on servers with IP addresses in Vietnam.

b) Assigning a third-level domain under the second-level domain ".vn" to entities that are not members of their own agency, organization, or business before becoming a ".vn" domain registrar; individuals assigning a third-level domain under their own second-level domain to other organizations or individuals.

3. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compel the revocation of the domain name for violations stipulated in point b, Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 12. Violations of regulations on registering and providing Internet domain names

1. A fine of from five million to ten million Vietnamese dong shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) International domain registrars in Vietnam fail to guide organizations and individuals to declare information on the network to the Ministry of Information and Communications as prescribed when registering to use international domains.

b) Illegally obstructing organizations and individuals from switching ".vn" domain registrars.

c) International domain registrars in Vietnam fail to report updates of the list of international domains they manage to the Ministry of Information and Communications through the network as prescribed for management and use of Internet resources.

2. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on ".vn" domain registrars violating any of the following acts:

a) Failing to maintain or establish security measures for domains of registered organizations and individuals on their domain name system (DNS) server.

b) Reserving or hoarding domain names under any form when providing the national ".vn" domain.

c) Obstructing organizations and individuals from legally registering and using domain names.

d) Failing to provide or providing inaccurate information about organizations and individuals registering the ".vn" domain.

3. A fine of from VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Failing to register activities with the Ministry of Information and Communications when acting as an agent for registering and maintaining international domains in Vietnam.

b) Failing to cooperate or cooperating inadequately with state management agencies in handling matters related to domain names.

4. A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for providing international domains without meeting the conditions to become an international domain registrar in Vietnam as prescribed by the Ministry of Information and Communications.

Article 13. Violations of regulations on registering and using IP addresses and network numbers.

1. A fine of from five million to ten million Vietnamese dong shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Violating the regulations of the Ministry of Information and Communications on registering and using IP addresses and network numbers.

b) Applying directly to international organizations for IP addresses or network numbers to use in Vietnam without written permission from the Ministry of Information and Communications.

c) Failing to route address blocks assigned by Vietnam according to the guidance of the Vietnam Internet Center.

2. A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for routing international IP address blocks brought into Vietnam by agencies, organizations, or individuals from abroad for use without permission from competent state management authorities.

3. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compel the revocation of IP addresses and network numbers for violations stipulated in point a, Clause 1 of this Article.

Article 14. Violations of information security and safety regulations.

1. A fine of from ten million to twenty million Vietnamese dong for one of the following acts:

a) Continuing to provide services when terminal access devices cause insecurity to the Internet device system.

b) Disseminating passwords or encryption keys or personal information of organizations or individuals that have been stolen.

2. A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the following acts:

a) Not cooperating or not fully cooperating with state management agencies in ensuring information security and safety and investigating and preventing violations of laws in Internet activities.

b) Not implementing or not fully implementing technical and operational measures and equipment for ensuring network security and information security as directed by authorized state agencies.

3. A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on those who fail to perform emergency tasks or public service tasks mobilized by authorized state agencies.

4. Additional forms of administrative punishment:

a) Confiscation of objects and means used to commit administrative violations as stipulated in point b, Clause 1 of this Article.

b) Deportation of foreign nationals committing violations as stipulated in point b, Clause 1 of this Article.

Article 15. Violations of regulations on service charges, fees, and levies.

1. A fine of from five million to ten million Vietnamese dong shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Failure to announce service charges as prescribed.

b) Failure to register service charges as prescribed.

c) Internet service providers failing to account for Internet services separately.

d) Internet service providers failing to determine Internet service costs as prescribed.

đ) Collecting Internet service charges not in accordance with the announced rates.

2. A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on those who fail to issue Internet service charges.

3. For violations concerning service charges, fees, and levies in managing, providing, and using Internet services and electronic information on the Internet, penalties shall be applied according to Government Decrees on administrative penalties in the price sector and fee and levy sectors.

4. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compel recovery of improperly collected amounts for violations as stipulated in point đ, Clause 1 of this Article.

Article 16. Violations of regulations on service standards and quality.

c) Reporting quantities of goods entering, exiting, and remaining in transit ports;

a) Failure to publish service quality according to voluntary standards on the enterprise's electronic news page when providing Internet services not included in the list of telecommunications services subject to mandatory quality management.

b) Publishing or self-publishing service quality not within the prescribed time limit.

c) Publishing on the enterprise's electronic news page or posting at transaction points not in accordance with the Service Quality Announcement and the List of Service Quality Indicators in the Service Quality Announcement file submitted to the competent state management agency.

d) Not retaining or not fully retaining monitoring result documents and monitoring data for two years from the date of establishing the monitoring results.

đ) Not retaining or not fully retaining inspection, testing, evaluation result documents and data for at least two years from the date of establishing the inspection, testing, and evaluation results.

2. Imposing a fine of VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Not publishing on the enterprise's electronic news page or not posting at transaction points the Service Quality Announcement and the List of Service Quality Indicators for Internet services included in the list of telecommunications services subject to mandatory quality management.

b) Not conducting self-inspection or self-monitoring of service quality as prescribed.

c) Conducting self-inspection or monitoring of service quality not in accordance with the prescribed requirements or conducting service quality monitoring not in accordance with the written requirements of the competent state management agency.

3. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Not issuing self-inspection rules or self-monitoring rules for service quality as prescribed.

b) Not conducting service quality monitoring as required by the written requirements of the competent state management agency.

4. Imposing a fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for one of the following acts:

a) Providing Internet services included in the list of telecommunications services subject to mandatory quality management but without the Service Quality Announcement Acceptance Certificate from the competent state management agency.

b) Not reissuing the Service Quality Announcement for Internet services when there are changes related to previously announced contents.

c) Not providing, not fully providing, or providing inaccurate materials and data for testing and inspecting Internet service quality.

5. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on those who provide Internet services with lower quality than the announced or self-announced service quality level.

6. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compel restoration to the original condition altered due to administrative violations as stipulated in Clause 5 of this Article.

Article 17. Violations of regulations on online games

1. A fine of from ten million to twenty million Vietnamese dong for one of the following acts:

a) Advertising or introducing online games that have not been permitted to circulate in Vietnam;

b) Not establishing management regulations for online game activities as required by law when providing online game services in Vietnam;

c) Not providing complete information about game rules and management regulations for online game activities on the main page of the game established by the enterprise;

d) Violating one of the conditions for providing online game services as stipulated by law.

2. A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the following acts:

a) Not notifying in writing to the competent state management agency or not announcing on the main page of the game at least three months before ceasing service provision;

b) Providing online games with content that does not conform to the content and script approved by the competent state management agency.

3. A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Providing online game services or acting as an agent to provide online game services in Vietnam without permission from the competent state management agency;

b) Allowing users to provide content within the game and on the game forum that violates prohibitions set forth in the Decree on managing, providing, and using Internet services and electronic information on the Internet.

4. Additional forms of administrative punishment:

a) Seizing objects and means used to commit administrative violations as specified in point a, Clause 3, Article 17 herein;

b) Deporting foreign nationals who violate the provisions as specified in point a, Clause 3, Article 17 herein.

5. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compelling the removal of electronic information content for violations as specified in point b, Clause 2 and point b, Clause 3, Article 17 herein.

Article 18. Violations of regulations on electronic information websites

1. A fine of from five million to ten million Vietnamese dong shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Not complying with or not fully complying with the regulations in the license for setting up an integrated electronic information website;

b) Providing links to electronic information websites containing content that violates the law;

c) Violating one of the management regulations for electronic information on the Internet for websites that do not require a license.

2. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the following acts:

a) Uploading publications to an electronic information website without the consent of the Publisher;

b) Providing information on an integrated electronic information website that does not conform to the content specified in the license.

3. Other administrative violations concerning electronic information websites shall be applied according to the Government's Decree on penalties for administrative violations in the fields of information technology, press, and publishing.

4. Additional forms of administrative punishment:

Revoking the license usage rights for ninety to one hundred eighty days for violations as specified in point b, Clause 2, Article 18 herein.

5. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compelling the removal of electronic information content on the Internet for violations as specified in point b, Clause 1, and Clause 2, Article 18 herein.

Article 19. Violations of regulations on providing online social networking services

1. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for failing to implement or implementing incorrectly the regulation on the provision, use, and exchange of information issued by the enterprise.

2. A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for not establishing a regulation on the provision, use, and exchange of information as required.

3. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for not providing information related to service users upon request of competent state agencies.

4. A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for providing online social networking services without a notification from the Ministry of Information and Communications confirming receipt of a valid registration application.

5. A fine of VND 50,000,000 to VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for failing to block and remove content that violates prohibited actions as set forth in the Decree on managing, providing, and using Internet services and electronic information on the Internet upon request of the competent state management agency.

6. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compelling the removal of electronic information content on the Internet for violations as specified in Clause 5, Article 19 herein.

Article 20. Violations of provisions on dispute resolution and complaints

c) Reporting quantities of goods entering, exiting, and remaining in transit ports;

a) Not publicly posting the complaint resolution process related to Internet services at transaction points.

b) Resolving complaints related to Internet services not in accordance with the prescribed time limit.

2. Imposing a fine of VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Not issuing the complaint resolution process related to Internet services.

b) Not resolving customer complaints in accordance with the law.

3. A fine of from VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 for the act of not considering, resolving, or not reporting the results of complaint resolution as required by competent state management agencies.

Article 21. Violations of reporting regulations

1. A fine of from VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 for the act of being late in reporting up to 15 days compared to the prescribed period or as required by competent state agencies.

2. A fine of from VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 for the act of not reporting fully as prescribed or as required by competent state agencies.

3. Imposing a fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for one of the following acts:

a) Not implementing the reporting system or being late in reporting more than 15 days compared to the prescribed period or as required by competent state agencies;

b) Reporting inaccurately as prescribed or as required by competent state agencies.

Article 22. Acts of obstructing or opposing state officials performing inspection and supervision duties.

1. Warning or a fine of from VND 200,000 to VND 500,000 for one of the following acts:

a) Not providing or providing incomplete documents, papers, certificates as requested by authorized inspection and supervision personnel;

b) Not declaring or declaring inaccurately about matters related to inspection and supervision.

2. A fine of from VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 for the act of obstructing state officials performing inspection and supervision duties when carrying out their official duties.

3. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Disposing of evidence of violations under inspection, supervision, or temporary detention;

b) Removing seals on evidence of violations that are sealed or temporarily detained without authorization.

4. A fine of from VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for the act of delaying or evading compliance with administrative decisions on inspection and administrative violation handling issued by authorized personnel.

5. Measures to remedy consequences:

Order the recovery of disposed evidence for violations stipulated in point a, Clause 3, Article 20 herein.

Chapter 3.

AUTHORITY AND PROCEDURES FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES

Article 23. Authority to impose administrative penalties of the specialized Inspection Agency for Information and Communications Technology

1. Specialized Inspection Officers for Information and Communications Technology performing official duties have the authority:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 500,000 VND;

c) Confiscate objects, means used for administrative violations valued up to VND 2,000,000;

d) Apply remedial measures as provided for in points a and c, Clause 3, Article 5 of this Decree;

đ) Exercise the rights provided for in point 2, Clause 19, Article 1 of the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Ordinance on Administrative Violation Handling 2008 and Clause 2, Article 48 of the Ordinance on Administrative Violation Handling 2002.

2. The Chief Inspector of the Department of Information and Communications Technology has the authority:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose fines up to thirty million dong;

c) Suspend the right to use licenses, professional certificates;

d) Confiscate objects and means used to commit administrative violations;

d) Apply remedial measures as provided for in points a, c, d, đ, Clause 3, Article 5 of this Decree;

e) Exercise the rights provided for in point 1, Clause 19, Article 1 of the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Ordinance on Administrative Violation Handling 2008.

3. The Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Information and Communications has the authority:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 70,000,000;

c) Suspend the right to use licenses within its jurisdiction;

d) Confiscate objects and means used to commit administrative violations;

d) Apply remedial measures as provided for in points a, c, d, đ, Clause 3, Article 5 of this Decree;

e) Exercise the rights provided for in point 1, Clause 19, Article 1 of the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Ordinance on Administrative Violation Handling 2008.

Article 24. Competence to impose administrative penalties of other specialized inspectors.

Within the scope of state management authority prescribed by the Government, inspectors and heads of other specialized inspection agencies have the competence to impose administrative penalties for acts of administrative violations in providing or using specialized application services on the Internet within their respective fields of state management.

Article 25. Competence to impose administrative penalties of People's Committees at all levels

Chairpersons of People's Committees at all levels have the authority to impose administrative penalties according to the competencies prescribed in Clauses 4, 5 of Article 1 of the Ordinance amending and supplementing certain articles of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2008 and Article 30 of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2002 amended by the Ordinance amending certain articles of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2007 within the territorial area under their management for acts of administrative violations concerning the Internet as stipulated in this Decree.

Article 26. Competence to impose administrative penalties of the People's Public Security, Border Guard, Coast Guard, Customs, Tax Authority, Market Management Authority

The People's Public Security, Border Guard, Coast Guard, Customs, Tax Authority, Market Management Authority have the authority to impose administrative penalties according to the competencies prescribed in Clauses 6, 7, 8, 9, 11 of Article 1 of the Ordinance amending and supplementing certain articles of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2008 and Article 37 of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2002 for acts of administrative violations concerning the Internet directly related to their respective fields of management as stipulated in this Decree.

Article 27. Delimitation of Competence to Impose Administrative Penalties

1. In cases where administrative violations fall within the competence to impose penalties of several persons, the person who first takes charge shall carry out the penalty.

2. The competence to impose administrative penalties as prescribed in Articles 23, 24, 25, and 26 of this Decree applies to each individual act of administrative violation. In cases of fines, the competence to impose penalties is determined based on the maximum amount of the fine prescribed for each specific act of violation.

3. In cases where a person commits multiple acts of administrative violations, the competence to impose penalties is determined according to the principle prescribed in Point 3 Clause 17 of Article 1 of the Ordinance amending and supplementing certain articles of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2008.

Article 28. Procedures for Imposing Administrative Penalties and Enforcing Penalty Decisions

1. The procedures for imposing administrative penalties are governed by the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations and Decree No. 128/2008/NĐ-CP dated December 16, 2008 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain articles of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2002 and the Ordinance amending and supplementing certain articles of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2008.

2. The application of coercive measures to enforce decisions on administrative penalties is carried out in accordance with Decree No. 37/2005/NĐ-CP dated March 18, 2005 of the Government on the procedures for applying coercive measures to enforce decisions on administrative penalties and Clause 27 of Article 1 of the Ordinance amending and supplementing certain articles of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2008.

3. All cases of administrative violations subject to penalties must be recorded in files and kept complete at the penalizing agency for the period prescribed by law.

Chapter 4.

PETITION, COMPLAINT, AND HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS

Article 29. Complaints, reports, and resolution of complaints and reports

1. Organizations and individuals subject to administrative penalties for violations related to the Internet, or their legitimate representatives, have the right to file complaints against the penalty decision made by the competent authority. During the time awaiting the resolution of the complaint from the competent authority, the individual subject to the penalty must still comply with the penalty decision.

2. Citizens have the right to report to competent authorities, organizations, or individuals about administrative violations related to the Internet according to the provisions of the law on complaints and reports.

3. Citizens have the right to report to competent authorities, organizations, or individuals about unlawful acts of the authority responsible for imposing administrative penalties for violations related to the Internet.

4. The jurisdiction, procedures, processes, and deadlines for complaints and reports, as well as the resolution of complaints and reports, shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law on complaints and reports.

Article 30. Administrative Litigation

Initiating litigation before the court regarding decisions on administrative penalties, decisions on applying preventive measures, and ensuring the handling of administrative violations shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the law on the procedures for resolving administrative cases.

Article 31. Handling Violations

1. If the authority responsible for imposing administrative penalties for violations related to the Internet engages in harassment, tolerance, cover-up, failure to impose penalties, delayed imposition of penalties, improper imposition of penalties, or imposes penalties beyond its jurisdiction, it will be subject to disciplinary action or criminal responsibility depending on the nature and severity of the violation; if damage is caused, compensation must be provided in accordance with the law.

2. If an individual subject to administrative penalties for violations related to the Internet obstructs or resists a public servant performing their duties, they will be subject to administrative penalties or criminal responsibility depending on the nature and severity of the violation; if damage is caused, compensation must be provided in accordance with the law.

Chapter 5.

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 32. Effectiveness

This Decree takes effect from May 15, 2009.

Article 33. Responsibility for Implementation

The Minister of Information and Communications, the Ministers, the Heads of Ministries equivalent to Ministries, the Heads of Government Agencies, and the Chairpersons of Provincial People's Committees directly under the Central Government are responsible for implementing this Decree.