Be wary of harmful videos on social media.
(Baonghean.vn) - In recent years, social media in Vietnam has experienced explosive growth. Names like Facebook, Zalo, TikTok, and YouTube have become familiar in daily life. However, many people have become addicted to social media without realizing it. In some cases, people have been exploited by malicious individuals who manipulate information and engage in illegal activities.
According to the latest statistics, the average Vietnamese person spends approximately 6 hours and 42 minutes per day, equivalent to one-quarter of a day, accessing the internet across all devices. Of that, 2 hours and 33 minutes are spent accessing social media, higher than the global average of 2 hours and 16 minutes. The report indicates that 76% of respondents stated they use digital platforms to keep up with and interact with friends and family. Following closely behind are activities related to updating news about current events or entertainment news, accounting for 48% and 39% respectively of Vietnamese users' online activities.
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Facebook. (Illustrative image) |
According to statistics from NapoleonCat (a tool that monitors social media metrics) as of June 2021, the total number of Facebook users in Vietnam is...nearly 76 million peopleThis number accounts for...over 70% of the country's population, an increase of 31 million users compared to 2019, and still holds the number one position among popular social networks in Vietnam.
Taking advantage of the widespread use of Facebook, hostile forces and extremist elements have intensified their subversive activities with increasingly sophisticated and cunning forms and content. Especially since the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic, people have tended to use social media more, leading to a surge in the dissemination of harmful information.
Currently, on Facebook's Watch video platform, there are dozens of channels that regularly post content.The video clip contains explicit and sensitive content.Hidden behind these videos is a conspiracy to undermine the credibility of the Party and the State, and to harm national unity. These channels thoroughly exploit political and social events in the country to edit articles, use artificial intelligence (AI) to convert text into speech, and then cut and paste images from the internet to create video clips. Channels like "America Returns," "Voice of America," and "Truth 24"... regularly produce and post video clips about the political and social situation in Vietnam. In these videos, they use many disrespectful and satirical words and slang towards the leaders of the Party and the State.
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| Many harmful video channels are operating on social media. |
More dangerously, they link unrelated events together to distort the truth, slander, and discredit organizations and individuals. For example, the case involving Van Thinh Phat was distorted by associating it with the business trips of high-ranking leaders; the case involving rescue flights was linked to personnel organization issues… In addition, they thoroughly exploit lawsuits, protracted cases, or instances of discontent to create subversive content.
More subtly, in many videos, instead of directly criticizing or expressing opinions, they use manipulative tactics to entice viewers. For example, after distorting a land dispute case, they end the clip with questions like: "Do you think the government is right?", "Is the law wrong or are the people wrong?", or "Does the law protect the people?"... This is a very dangerous tactic; it makes viewers feel unfavorable towards the way authorities handle each case. Like a persistent drizzle, many such clips cause viewers to develop suspicion and lose faith in the legal system; thereby eroding trust in the Party…
To undermine the system, hostile forces will stop at nothing. They meticulously manipulate and edit unrelated images to...juggle with factsThey are willing to infringe on the copyrights of images and content from Vietnamese newspapers and magazines to alter the content in order to tarnish and defame the image of our country. Particularly dangerous is the recent trend of creating video clips that appear to praise the regime and the Party, but interspersed throughout are segments containing distorted information and undermining the prestige of the Party and the State. This is a devious tactic to evade Vietnamese cybersecurity forces while still attracting viewers.
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| Every citizen needs to filter information on social media to eliminate harmful videos. (Illustrative image) |
Admittedly, these individuals are very skilled at creating video clips to attract viewers. They use a wide variety of graphic techniques and special effects to create a sense of novelty. Their video production speed is also very fast. As soon as domestic newspapers publish an article about an event, within just a few dozen minutes, distorted videos and controversial comments appear on social media. From there, they share and disseminate them through groups and forums with increasing frequency.
Currently, hostile forces are increasingly linking social media platforms to carry out subversive activities. Harmful videos on Facebook's Watch platform are uploaded to TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, and other platforms to reach a wider audience. Therefore, everyone needs to be highly vigilant about these types of videos and exercise caution in filtering information before watching and sharing. Authorities need to implement more effective measures to prevent the spread of harmful videos on social media.