Vietnam asks not to release Pokemon in sensitive areas

Vietnam requires not releasing Pokemon in sensitive areas, including dangerous areas such as highways, areas with specific dress codes such as temples, pagodas, historical sites...

Players use GPS maps on smartphones to find the locations of Pokémon pets and catch them - Photo: The Guardian

According to Mr. Le Quang Tu Do, Deputy Director of the Department of Radio, Television and Electronic Information, the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) is preparing a document to send a request to the Pokemon Go game service provider.

The document will require the producer and publisher of the Pokemon Go game to comply with Vietnamese law to ensure that the game does not cause harm to society.

The document requires not releasing Pokemon in sensitive areas, including dangerous areas such as highways, areas with specific regulations on mandatory clothing such as temples, pagodas, historical sites...

At the same time, Pokemon game service providers are required to comply with Vietnamese law and ensure the rights and safety of players, especially information security.

According to Mr. Le Quang Tu Do, the Ministry of Information and Communications will soon send this document to companies related to the game that is currently causing a fever in Vietnam.

At the same time, the Ministry also consulted the experience and information of many countries that have released this game to issue a recommendation on playing Pokemon Go.

In particular, it is recommended that players be careful to protect their rights, consider when playing because this is a game that is not protected by law, and be careful about the risk of personal information being leaked.

Players should be careful not to play in restricted areas, sensitive or dangerous areas, or while participating in traffic...

Players also need to be careful when installing software, especially software of unknown origin to support this game because there is a risk of spreading malware.

Mr. Tu Do added: “Finally, it is recommended that civil servants not play Pokemon Go during working hours. Actually, the regulation of not playing games during working hours already has a process, this recommendation is just a reiteration.”

“Currently, for online game publishing companies such as Apple, Google, Microsoft... we have had close coordination in many games.

They have an official document replying that they will cooperate in handling if the game violates Vietnamese law. We will request to remove the game if it violates Vietnamese law" - Mr. Do emphasized.

According to TTO