Vietnam authorities combat rising burglaries and digital fraud

Authorities in Vietnam are reporting a rise in diverse criminal activities, ranging from physical theft to sophisticated digital fraud. In Thanh Hoa province, police arrested Nguyen Quy Son for a series of professional burglaries. Son targeted isolated homes, often traveling long distances and using stolen vehicles to evade detection, including a recent incident where he stole gold valued at approximately 178 million VND.

In cybercrime, prosecutors are pursuing a group of eight individuals, including Luu Sinh Dien, for a large-scale scam operating out of Cambodia. The group impersonated Shopee employees, promising high returns on fake e-commerce orders to defraud Vietnamese customers. The operation was reportedly managed by a Chinese criminal organization.

Additionally, police have issued warnings regarding new social engineering tactics. Scammers are impersonating local officials, police officers, or land management staff to trick citizens into providing personal data, OTP codes, or scanning identity documents via fraudulent websites. These schemes often use pretexts such as updating electronic identification (VNeID) or settling land taxes to gain unauthorized access to bank accounts and personal information.