Vietnam police issue nationwide warnings on Zalo, phone and fake‑app scams

Police forces in several Vietnamese provinces – Gia Lai, Lâm Đồng, Lạng Sơn and Hưng Yên – have issued alerts about an increase in fraud schemes that impersonate government officials, police or telecom staff. Scammers contact victims via Zalo, Facebook, phone calls or SMS, claiming that personal records, land‑use files or electronic identity (VNeID) accounts need urgent verification. They send fake links that mimic official portals, request personal details, identity numbers, bank‑account information and one‑time passwords (OTP). Once the OTP is obtained, the fraudsters transfer money from the victims’ bank accounts. Similar tactics are used in scams targeting people seeking overseas work or study, where a counterfeit “visa” or “export‑labour” app is installed to gain remote control of the phone. Authorities advise the public never to share passwords, OTPs or personal data with anyone, to avoid clicking unknown links, to verify any requests through official channels, and to report suspicious contacts to the police immediately.