Chương I Luật Viễn thông 2023: Những quy định chung

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope

This Law provides for telecommunications activities, rights and obligations of organizations and individuals participating in telecommunications activities, state management of telecommunications.

Article 2. Regulated entities

This Law applies to Vietnamese organizations and individuals, foreign organizations and individuals that directly or indirectly participate in or are involved in telecommunications activities in Vietnam.

Article 3. Definitions

For the purposes of this Law, the terms below are construed as follows:

1. "telecommunications" are the sending, transmission, receipt and processing of symbols, signals, data, text, images, sound or other forms of information by cables, radio waves, optical devices and other electromagnetic devices.

2. Telecommunications activities include investment and provision of basic telecommunications services, value-added telecommunications services; public telecommunications activities; issuance, reissuance, revision, revocation of telecommunications licenses; connection and sharing of telecommunications infrastructure; management of telecommunications resources; management of technical regulations and standards, quality and services for telecommunications services, construction of telecommunications works.

3. Telecommunication devices are technical devices including hardware, software, hardware with software used for telecommunications.

4. Terminal devices are fixed or mobile telecommunication devices that are connected to the terminal end of a telecommunications network for sending, transmitting, receiving and processing information.

5.Network devices are telecommunication devices installed on a telecommunications network for provision of telecommunications services.

6. Telecommunications goods are telecommunication devices and supplies that can be traded, sold and bought on the market.

7. Telecommunications services include basic telecommunications services and value-added telecommunications services.

a) Basic telecommunications services are services including sending, transmission, and receipt of information between two people or a group of people using telecommunications services among terminal devices via a telecommunications network.

b) Value-added telecommunications services are services that provide additional functions including processing, storage, and extraction of information for users via sending, transmitting, receiving information on a telecommunications network.

8. Basic telecommunications services on the internet are services that provide primary functions including sending, transmission, and receipt of information between two people or a group of people using telecommunications services on the internet.

9. Data center services are services that provide functions including processing, storage, and extraction of information for users via the telecommunications network by leasing part or all of the data center.

10. Cloud computing is a model that allows flexible use, on-demand adjustment and administration of shared computing resources, including networks, servers, storage devices, applications.

11. Cloud computing services are services that provide functions including processing, storage, and extraction of information for users via cloud computing.

12. Telecommunications application services are services using the telecommunications network to provide application services in the fields of information technology, radio and television broadcasting, commerce, finance, banking, culture, information, health, education and others.

13. Transmission line is a collection of telecommunication devices used for establishing part of or the entire information transmission line between two defined points.

14. Telecommunications network is a collection of telecommunication devices that are connected by transmission lines to provide telecommunications services or telecommunications application services.

15. Public telecommunications network is telecommunications network established by a telecommunication enterprise to provide commercial telecommunications services or telecommunications application services for the public.

16. Private telecommunications network is telecommunications network established by an organization operating in Vietnam to provide telecommunications services or telecommunications application services for its network members for purposes other than direct profit from operation of such network.

17. Local area network (LAN) is a telecommunications network established by an organization or individual at a location with a defined area and address to which such organization has the legal right to use for the purpose of internal communication instead of direct profit from operation of such network.

18. Internet is a global information system that uses Internet protocol and Internet resources to provide various services and applications for telecommunications service users

19. Endpoint node of a public telecommunications network is a physical connection point of a telecommunications network according to technical regulations and standards to assure the connection of terminal devices to the telecommunications network and set the boundary between the telecommunication enterprise and telecommunications service users.

20. Telecommunication connections are physical and logical connections of telecommunications networks through which telecommunications service users of one network can communicate with users or access services of another network and vice versa.

21. Telecommunication works are construction works including passive telecommunications technical infrastructure and devices installed thereon to serve telecommunication operations.

22. Passive telecommunications technical infrastructure is infrastructural works including houses, stations, antenna masts, cable posts, conduits, ducts, trenches, tunnels and other relevant infrastructural works for installation of telecommunication devices.

23. Data centers are telecommunication works, including the houses, stations, cable systems, computer systems, electricity systems and auxiliary devices installed thereon to process, store and manage data of one or several organizations and individuals.

24. Telecommunications infrastructure is a collection of telecommunications networks and telecommunication works.

25. Essential devices are important parts of a telecommunications infrastructure owned or largely owned on the telecommunications market and the establishment of replacing infrastructure is economically and technically unfeasible.

26. Telecommunications resources are national resources, including telecommunications numbers, Internet resources, radio frequency spectra and satellite orbits under the management of Vietnam.

27. Telecommunications numbers are a collection of codes and numbers under the management of Vietnam and are uniformly planned for establishment of telecommunications networks, provision and use of telecommunications services and telecommunications application services.

28. Internet resources are a collection of domain names, Internet addresses, network codes, other numbers and names under the management of Vietnam, including Vietnamese Internet resources and international Internet resources allocated by international organizations to organizations and individuals for use in Vietnam.

29. Telecommunications enterprises are enterprises established in accordance with Vietnamese law and are permitted to provide telecommunications services in accordance with this Law. Telecommunication enterprises include:

a) Providers of services with network infrastructure are enterprises that establish, own public telecommunications networks and provide telecommunications services;

a) Providers of services without network infrastructure are enterprises provide telecommunications services without establishing or owning public telecommunications networks.

30. Telecommunications services agents are organizations and individuals that sign contracts with telecommunication enterprises to provide telecommunications services for users.

31. Telecommunications service users are organizations and individuals that sign telecommunications service contracts with telecommunication enterprises or telecommunications service agents.

32. Telecommunication subscribers are telecommunications service users associated with specific telecommunications resources or transmission lines.

33. Resale of telecommunications services means a telecommunication enterprise or telecommunications service agent to provide telecommunications services by leasing or buying telecommunications traffic or service under a contract with another telecommunication enterprise.

34. Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) is an integrated circuit intended to store a subscriber number, other information and data used for provision and use of telecommunications services.

35. Foreign organizations are organizations that are established overseas under foreign laws.

Article 4. State policies on telecommunications

1. Enable organizations and individuals in all economic sectors to invest and participate in telecommunications business in order to populate wideband telecommunications infrastructure, data centers, cloud computing toward sustainability and modernity; form digital infrastructure that satisfies the requirements for development of digital economy and digital society, contributes to defense and security and improves the people's life.

2. Ensure healthy competition in telecommunications.

3. Facilitate development of infrastructure and provision of telecommunications services in border areas, mountainous areas, highland regions, coastal sand dunes, coastal areas, islands, ethnic minority areas, disadvantaged areas; separate public telecommunication operations from and telecommunication business.

4. Promote application of the internet to administration, education, training, healthcare, scientific research and other fields.

5. Research and develop new-generation Internet applications, technologies, standards, low-altitude satellites, next-generation telecommunications network technologies.

6. Investment construction and modernization of dedicated telecommunications networks serving national defense, security, operations of Communist Party agencies and the State.

7. Encourage development of human resources for telecommunications to meet the requirements for effective management and operation of telecommunications infrastructure.

8. Promote international cooperation in telecommunications on the basis of respect for independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, mutual benefits, conformity with the law of Vietnam and international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a signatory.

Article 5. Ensuring safety of telecommunications infrastructure, cybersecurity and information security

1. Ensuring safety of telecommunications infrastructure, cybersecurity and information security is the responsibility of all organizations and individuals. Organizations and individuals are responsible for promptly reporting any obstruction to lawful construction, sabotage or violation of telecommunications infrastructure to the People’s Committee of the commune or the nearest police authority.

2. Telecommunication enterprises, organizations establishing telecommunications networks, organizations and individuals owning passive telecommunications infrastructure, telecommunications service agents and telecommunications service users have the responsibility to protect telecommunications networks and terminal devices.

3. During performing activities, organizations and individuals must not cause harmful interference, damage telecommunications devices, works and networks or adversely affect lawful operation of telecommunications infrastructure of other organizations and individuals.

4. Organizations and individuals engaged in telecommunications activities shall be subject to management, inspection and examination by competent state agencies, and respond to requests of these agencies for the assurance of safety of telecommunications infrastructure and information security according to regulations of law.

5. The Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Public Security and People's Committees at all levels and relevant agencies shall, within the ambit of their tasks and powers, protect the safety of the telecommunications infrastructure and handle acts of obstruction to lawful construction, sabotage or violation of telecommunications infrastructure

6. Telecommunication enterprises are responsible for terminating the provision of telecommunications services in case of mob violence or use of telecommunications services against national security or the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam at the request of competent state agencies under regulations of law.

7. At the request of competent state agencies according to the Cybersecurity Law, telecommunications enterprises shall provide telecommunications network access points and other necessary technical and professional conditions for these agencies to control and protect the information security

8. The Government shall elaborate assurance about safety of telecommunications infrastructure and cybersecurity in telecommunications activities.

Article 6. Ensuring information confidentiality

1. Organizations and individuals engaged in telecommunications activities shall protect state secrets under the law on protection of state secrets.

2. When sending, transmitting or storing information classified as state secrets through telecommunications networks, organizations and individuals shall encrypt such information under the law on cipher.

3. Private information transmitted through public telecommunications networks of all organizations and individuals shall be kept confidential. Information on telecommunications networks shall be controlled by competent state agencies under regulations of law.

4. Telecommunications enterprises must not disclose private information related to telecommunications service users, including information on telecommunication subscribers (names, addresses, telecommunications subscriber numbers and other private information provided by users upon entry into contracts with telecommunications enterprises), and information about use of telecommunications services (sending and receiving numbers, positions of sending and receiving terminal devices, sending and receiving time, call duration and internet address), except for the following cases:

a) Telecommunications service users agree to provide information according to regulations of the law on protection of personal data;

b) Telecommunications enterprises agree in writing to exchange and provision of information on telecommunication subscribers and use of telecommunications services by users for calculation of charges and billing of invoices;

c) Telecommunications enterprises provide information on telecommunication subscribers that commit acts of shirking obligations to pay telecommunications service prices according to regulations issued by the Minister of Information and Communications;

d) There is any request from competent state agencies according to regulations of law.

Article 7. Information prioritized for transmission via telecommunications networks

1. Urgent information in service of national defense and security.

2. Urgent information in service of prevention and control of natural disasters, search and rescue, salvage, fires and other disasters.

3. Urgent information in service of prevention and control of epidemics and diseases.

4. Other cases specified by the law on cases of emergency.

Article 8. National telecommunications development planning

1. National telecommunications development planning is integrated into the information and communications infrastructure planning with a view to setting objectives, principles and orientations for development of telecommunications market, infrastructure, technologies and services and solutions thereto.

2. The formulation of national telecommunications development planning shall adhere to the following principles:

a) Conform to the national strategy, national planning and national socio-economic development plan during each period; comply with Vietnamese laws and international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a signatory;

b) Be consistent with the trend of telecommunications technology and service convergence; and facilitate the application of modem and advanced technologies;

c) Ensure effective and economical management, extraction and use of telecommunications resources for proper purposes;

d) Ensure the sustainable and harmonious telecommunications development: narrow down the telecommunications development gap among different regions and areas;

dd) Protect the environment and ensure the safety of telecommunications infrastructure and information security.

3. According to information and communications infrastructure planning, regional planning, provincial planning, technical planning and specialized planning, telecommunications enterprises shall formulate their plannings and plans.

Article 9. Prohibited acts in telecommunications activities

1. Taking advantage of telecommunications activities to commit acts against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; violating national security or social order and safety, thereby causing harm to interests of the State, the legitimate rights and interests of organizations and/or individuals

2. Stealthily retrieving, eavesdropping on or accessing without permission information on telecommunications networks; hacking and using without permission telecommunications resources, passwords, keywords and private information of other organizations and individuals.

3. Illegally obstructing the establishment of telecommunications infrastructure, disrupting or undermining the establishment of telecommunications infrastructure, lawful provision and use of telecommunications services.

4. Establishing telecommunications infrastructure and providing telecommunications services without permission under regulations of law.

5. Using devices and software that send, transmit and receive information via telecommunications networks in order to commit violations against law.