Vietnam's Criminal Police Department (Cục Cảnh sát hình sự), part of the Ministry of Public Security, published a warning on 26 August 2026 about what it called the "technologization" of organized gambling, saying rings now use Telegram bots, websites and apps to automate football betting and the sale of lottery numbers1.
Police summoned 30 people and carried out emergency searches of 11 locations in Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho City and An Giang province, seizing mobile phones, computers, iPads, cash, ledgers, documents and electronic data1. The department said the network operated in multiple tiers, with assigned roles for leaders, agents, people who directly took bets, those who calculated winnings and losses, and gamblers1. It said the operators used bank accounts, e-wallets and phone SIM cards registered in other people's names to hide identities and money flows, and that different tiers might not know each other fully, letting a network operate across provinces without gathering in one place1. The case is under further investigation1.
Colonel Bui Tuan Anh, deputy head of the Criminal Police Department, said the combination of traditional offending methods with digital technology has made gambling networks faster, wider, more discreet and harder to identify1.
"Đại tá Bùi Tuấn Anh, Phó Cục trưởng Cục Cảnh sát hình sự, Bộ Công an cảnh báo người dân chủ động nhận diện các thủ đoạn này"
The article set out penalties under current law. Gambling with money or goods worth from 5 million to under 50 million dong, or under 5 million dong in defined circumstances, can bring a fine of 20 million to 100 million dong, non-custodial reform of up to three years, or a prison term of six months to three years; aggravating factors including use of the internet or electronic means can raise the prison term to three to seven years plus an additional fine of 10 million to 50 million dong1.
| Conduct | Penalty cited |
|---|---|
| Illegal betting in sports or entertainment | 1 million to 2 million dong |
| Soliciting or gathering others to gamble, or providing premises | 5 million to 10 million dong |
| Some forms of organizing lottery or illegal betting | 10 million to 20 million dong |
| Buying, selling, renting or borrowing payment accounts, 1 to under 10 accounts | 100 million to 150 million dong |
| Same conduct, 10 accounts or more | 150 million to 200 million dong |
The account and SIM penalties come under Decree 340/2025/ND-CP, and the article said such conduct can also be prosecuted under Article 291 of the Penal Code, with a maximum prison term of up to seven years1. The administrative fines for betting and organizing come under Article 36 of Decree 282/2025/ND-CP1.
What it means for players
The department's position is that small stakes do not mean no consequences: amounts below the threshold for criminal prosecution can still draw administrative fines, and property and equipment can be confiscated with illegal gains ordered returned1. It listed the invitations it wants reported, including joining football betting or lottery groups, joining closed groups or "closed odds" channels, working as an agent or taking bets for commission, renting out accounts, SIM cards or e-wallets, receiving or transferring money for others, and installing apps or using websites of unknown origin to bet1. People who gamble in Vietnam through Telegram and social apps or through online lottery agents fall within the conduct described. The wider legal position for players in the region is set out in the site's guide to online gambling law in Asia, and the risks of using a VPN to gamble online and of arrests of players for online gambling are covered separately.
What happens next
The ministry said the case continues to be expanded1. It said police forces, led by the criminal police, will keep tracking new methods, detect them early and dismantle networks, clarifying the role of each person involved1. No further court dates or additional charges have been reported.
