Tighter Block on Facebook In Vietnam as January Approaches

OK, I’m calling it. Yesterday midday I noticed Facebook was suddenly not available, here in Phan Thiet, Vietnam. I couldn’t access it on wifi via a local ISP, nor could I get it on 3G via state-owned Vinaphone cell service (the Facebook iPhone app couldn’t pull it up either). By nightfall, there were complaints about facebook access popping up all over the country—from Saigon to Danang to Hanoi. Not everybody had difficulty accessing facebook—in fact many of my friends still could—but it seemed half of the people I know could not.

This isn't a big surprise. Vietnam started blocking Facebook in September 0f 2009 due to political speech concerns. There was never an official call to block it—but a government memo was leaked. In typical Vietnam fashion, the website block was not across the board—it was left to each ISP to implement on their own. Thus Facebook access varied a lot depending upon your location and service provider, but eventually most ISP’s cut off direct access.

Most of us came up with work-arounds, which included anonymous IP, encrypted servers, a special Google DNS or remote desktop access. Likewise, some service providers eased up the censorship, and after a few weeks it was possible to access Facebook directly on most cell phone services.

The new move—a tighter block on Facebook which circumvents some of the work-arounds, comes just a couple of weeks before the convening on the National Congress of Vietnam’s Communist Party. This only happens once ever several years and is a very big deal because a large portion of the government comes up for re-election. The government becomes concerned about any social elements that could threaten social and political stability during these sessions, and so the clamps tend to come down hard. We don't know for certain if this is the reason for the outage, but it seems highly likely.

Hopefully things will loosen back up after the congress is over. Hopefully the block won’t include other services as well, namely Twitter, Youtube, Blogger and other popular online resources. But there is always the possibility that these could be affected next.

If you are having trouble accessing Facebook it Vietnam, there appears to be a new backdoor available into the website via http://www.lisp4.facebook.com

Phan Thiet Christmas Light Displays, 2010

Below are some highlights of Phan Thiet's Christmas lights and manger displays this year. These are all from Thanh Hai, the city's largest Catholic neighborhood, and taken with my iphone. 

The Friendly Circle K Mui Ne Invasion

The first Circle K opened this week in Mui Ne, one of only several "firsts" the company is likely to achieve on our beach. Circle K is the first international franchise to arrive in Mui Ne (Lotteria, the popular Japanese-Korean burger chain was the first foreign franchise to arrive in greater Phan Thiet city a few years ago).

Circle K now occupies the shop on the left side of Hot Rock (one of the longest-running bar/restaurants in Mui Ne). Though still setting up, Circle K Mui Ne is already carrying a notable selection of merchandise that was previously unavailable on the beach, and a few things that can otherwise only be purchased in Saigon. Notable items coming soon include Haagen Daazs Ice Cream, a bakery stocked by Pandanus Resort, freshly-squeezed tropical juice and grilled hot-dogs.

Two other Circle K's will open following this one, including a one in the old Living & Giving shop and restaurant. This will include something entirely unique--hostel accommodations in the back, and an eating are across the road at the beach. The third will open in the middle, near Paris Mui Ne.

While officially there are only 3 being discussed, rumors abound that up to 7 locations are planned throughout Mui Ne and downtown Phan Thiet. Circle K definitely has some of the smaller mom-and-pop shops nervous. Many think it will be hard to compete against a recognizable brand name that is open 24hrs, has such a polished appearance, a fixed price list, and is air-conditioned (Snow, the popular Russian bar and restaurant, is perhaps the only air-conditioned venue along the beach strip).

Circle K does have a few obstacles of its own however. Like everyone else, they must cope with Mui Ne's Russian tsunami at a time when some of the most successful businesses here are now Russian-owned, and the client base overwhelmingly Russian. The cultural, language and economic barrier has presented a dilemma to local businesses, and Circle K will likewise have to lean to adapt to this new business environment.

Likewise, while Circle K has brand recognition for some foreigners, the brand reputation starts from scratch with locals. The fact that their prices are slightly higher than competing businesses also may make it difficult, at least initially, to snag local customers.

There is no denying though that Circle K is paving the way for the inevitable appearance of other international franchises. Other businesses likely to ride on their coat tails include Highlands Coffee, Coffee Bean and KFC.

We CAN Make a Difference

Despite insurmountable odds, scorn, and a lot of nay saying by other expats, publicizing the scam problem in Saigon (which is being spearheaded by a growing Filipino Mafia) has begun to work. I was notified that not only are the investigative crime unit in Saigon actually tracking down these criminals based on my blog posts, but last week arrested 2 men in the group. We can stand up to this, and we can make a difference. I encourage victims to come forward and share your stories and photos. Vietnam's tourists shouldn't have to put up with harassment, scams and ultimately leave in fear and shame. Lets take back our city.

Many thanks to the support of other expats and travelers, the Saigon Police Department, the Caravelle Hotel, Vincom Shopping Centre and the victims who have come forward. We can do this together. Special thanks also to: vietnam720.com and johnnyvagabond.com.

Undercover Video Stills of Con Artists in Saigon Part 2

The following are undercover video stills submitted to us of Filipino con artists targeting tourists in the park along Pham Ngu lao Street in District 1, Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City). This woman is working as part of a team including one other woman (pictured in the previous post) and probably at least one lookout (mostly likely a male). They are part of a Filipino mafia that preys upon foreigners in Saigon. 

Warning signs: These women are loitering. They have no purpose for being in the park in the middle of the day. They aren't working, they aren't drinking coffee or eating lunch and they aren't on their way to go shopping or sight seeing. Their cloths are not typical of Vietnamese. These women neither look Vietnamese nor speak with a Vietnamese accent. These women are carrying hats and sunglasses to quickly conceal their identity if they have to run and hide. Women in this group always carry fanny packs or handbags tied around their waist.

Undercover Video Stills of Con Artists in Saigon Part 1

The following are undercover video stills submitted to us of Filipino con artists targeting tourists in the park along Pham Ngu lao Street in District 1, Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City). This woman is working as part of a team including one other woman (pictured in an upcoming post) and probably at least one lookout (mostly likely a male). They are part of a Filipino mafia that preys upon foreigners in Saigon. 

Warning signs: These women are loitering. They have no purpose for being in the park in the middle of the day. They aren't working, they aren't drinking coffee or eating lunch and they aren't on their way to go shopping or sight seeing. Their cloths are not typical of Vietnamese. Vietnamese women don't usually wear heavy jeans and polo shirts--especially white ones, which is a color reserved for Tet. These women neither look Vietnamese nor speak with a Vietnamese accent. These women are carrying hats and sunglasses to quickly conceal their identity if they have to run and hide. Women in this group always carry fanny packs or handbags tied around their waist.

Banana Pole Mafia, Hanoi

Another Valuable Testimonial From a Victim of the Filipino Card Scam in Saigon

Below is a testimonial, reprinted here with permission from the author, of a victim of the Filipino card scam that targets tourists in Saigon. The author refers to the criminals as Vietnamese, not realizing that they are actually from the Philippines, as he is new to the country. Many thanks to him for sharing his story, dated 10 December 2010, to help others.


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Guys, I've been in Ho Chi Minh City for six weeks and I would just like to remind everyone going or thinking of going about scams. I've been stopped by at least twelve different sets of people that come up to me and they do the normal "Hi, how are you? Where you from?" which everyone does. They ask what country your from, how long you've been here, how long until you go home, all the normal stuff. This is where the scam starts...

They want to ask you a few questions about your country. I'm [Nationality Redacted] but I've lied and said the [Nationalities Redacted], etc and the story is the same. They want to know about your country because they have a brother or sister going to your country, the most popular variation I've heard is "My sister is going to "insert country and major town" to work in a hospital." As soon as I hear this, and I've just heard it for my twelfth time I know it's a scam. I humour them though to make sure. They ask you if your free and invite you to their home so you can talk to the sister, in one case it was a mother they wanted me to speak to and my first time today it was a brother. It's nice, but I consider it too nice. Don't go to a stranger's home. If you really want to talk to someone, do it in public with tons of people. 

I tell them that they're the 10th, 11th, or 12th person who has someone going to work in a hospital in my home town from Saigon and I think it's very interesting. If not that, I'll say that I can't visit their home or I can't help them. Seconds after that they walk away to find the next Westerner.

I'm telling you this as I've been a victim of it. My first I wanted to help someone out and experience the culture. I went to their home and their sister wasn't there. I ate lunch with them. They wanted to gamble with me, brought me upstairs to a bedroom and locked the door behind me. I told them I have no money and we went back downstairs. I said I have things to do and I should go. They called me a cab and wanted to drop me off at my hotel. They said there Mom is dying in the hospital and need a blood transfusion and wanted to know if i could donate blood. I didn't want to so then they asked if I could give them money for blood, each bag was $50USD and the mom needs three. If I gave them $150USD being nice, I would have given them more money than most Vietnamese people make in a month, so it's a high profit scam. I told them to go donate blood. The conversation died and the girl beside me was trying to pull something out of her purse, I feared it was a knife or pistol and I jumped out of the taxi, fled to the consulate and they took me in. I told them everything and they said I was lucky. People have been drugged, have had everything stolen, cash, passports, cameras or anything of value and that if I had panicked in their home they wouldn't have let me leave. I wrote a statement of everything, they translated it to Vietnamese and I submitted it to the police. If they are caught it's good, but then there's another eleven groups still out there.

I mostly encounter them in the park along Pham Ngu Lao, as that's the backpackers area, but I've found them all over Ward 1. Vietnamese people are great, but it's this small percentage that destroy my trust in the locals. They speak English very well and are usually above 25 years old. This is in my experiences. In the park I have encountered University students and they simply want to practice English. Feel free to, just don't go anywhere out of the park with them. If you have a camera with you, ask if it's okay to take their picture. All the students I've talked to, and I've encountered twenty or thirty of them at different times are more than cool with it. They gave me their email to keep in touch. If they don't want their picture taken, don't trust them, as they're afraid you'll take it to the police. My last encounter I shot a video of two old ladies asking me questions. Students are cool with it, others aren't, but I told the ladies they were the lucky 12th set of people and after that they hid their faces and ran off.

Again Vietnamese people are great, I've made a good amount of friends and went to a vendor's house from Ben Thanh market to practice English to his children for a few hours. I don't suggest that you do, but I'm saying not everyone is out for your money, but of the fifteen people wanting to know about Canada, twelve gave me the scam story, the other three just wanted to practice English in the park and learn something new. Learn from my mistake, the scam is for any country, not just Canada. Don't give a real name, or the name of your hotel, etc. My rule is if I can't throw them, or out run them don't trust them at all. I'm not here to scare people, just to remind them. Be nice, have fun, just watch your ass. Take care :)