Vietnam CyberSafe Hacks 2026
This grant funds a Vietnam-based program to train and equip students and early-stage professionals (ages 18-30) to prevent cyber scams and trafficking through awareness, cybersecurity skills, and development of practical secure solutions.
RESTRICTED TO: NONPROFITS · STATE LOCAL GOV · SINGLE NAMED INSTITUTION
⚑ Only a single non-profit, non-governmental entity may be the prime recipient; for-profit entities are ineligible. · Award is limited to organizations eligible under the NOFO: not-for-profit organizations, not-for-profit educational institutions, and public international/governmental institutions. · Sub-contracting is allowed, but the prime must be one non-profit/non-governmental entity.
Unit fits — one characterization, each unit's own rules
| IPPRA | 40 partial | portfolio topic: cybersecurity (primary); signature methods: community engaged; social/behavioral work is minor; funds training education, not research (capped); capped at 40 (non-research funding) |
| Physical Sciences & Engineering (demo) | 40 partial | technical depth: substantial; funds training education (capped) |
| Tom Love Innovation Hub | 5 none | not openly competed |
Description
The U.S. Department of State’s Consulate General Ho Chi Minh City announces an open competition to implement a program to combat cyber scams.
Transnational organized crime in Southeast Asia is increasing at an unprecedented pace. The region has witnessed the proliferation of industrial-scale cyber fraud and scam operations, driven by sophisticated transnational criminal syndicates and networks of human traffickers. These criminal enterprises have expanded to inaccessible border areas, particularly in the Mekong region, and have become global leaders in cyber-enabled and cryptocurrency investment fraud—defrauding Americans of over $10 billion in 2024 alone.
Vietnam stands at a critical inflection point where rapid digital transformation and adoption meet these sophisticated transnational cybercrimes. Economic losses in Vietnam from cyber-enabled scams have reached billions of dollars. Thousands of Vietnamese, primarily aged 18-35, have been trafficked to neighboring countries and forced to work in scam operations against their will, often targeting Americans. Traffickers target young jobseekers with technology skills, including students, and recruit primarily through social media platforms.
Against this backdrop, this program will equip and deploy students and early-stage professionals aged 18-30 to raise awareness of, and reduce vulnerabilities to, cyber scams and trafficking. Participants will examine the cyber-enabled scam and trafficking landscape and develop skills in emerging American technologies and cybersecurity to build practical, innovative, secure, and legally compliant solutions that address these challenges and advance U.S. and regional prosperity and security.
Please follow carefully all instructions below.
Eligibility
The following organizations are eligible to apply: ● Not-for-profit organizations, including think tanks and civil society/non-governmental organizations ● Not-for-profit public and private educational institutions ● Public International Organizations and Governmental institutions For-profit entities, even those that may fall into the categories listed above, are not eligible to apply for this NOFO. Organizations may sub-contract with other entities, but only one, non-profit, non-governmental entity can be the prime recipient of the award. When sub-contracting with other entities, the responsibilities of each entity must be clearly defined in the proposal. For more information on the difference between sub-contract and sub-recipient, please refer to 2 CFR 200.331.
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View on Grants.gov → CONTACT: Hang N Tran Grantor <achcmc@state.gov>
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