How to distinguish real and fake textbooks?

Recently, there was a case of parents in Hanoi buying textbooks but could not trace the origin, suspected to be fake/pirated textbooks. During the peak of textbook shopping for the new school year, parents and students need to know how to distinguish between real and fake books?

According to the Vietnam Education Publishing House, counterfeit textbooks/pirated textbooks are books that individuals/organizations copy/scan from real books and then reprint, with the same content and presentation as real books.

Counterfeit textbooks, when sold widely on the market, directly threaten the quality of education. Counterfeit textbooks may have nice packaging and low prices... but inside they may have blurry printing, spelling mistakes, missing pages, thin paper that tears easily...

Students and parents look to buy textbooks at the bookstore of Vietnam Education Publishing House at 231 Nguyen Van Cu, Cho Quan Ward, Ho Chi Minh City.

PHOTO: THUY HANG

Using fake textbooks has big consequences for students

Many counterfeit textbooks/pirated textbooks do not guarantee full content and quality illustrations to save printing costs. Counterfeit textbooks are sold at different prices, which can be lower, but there are also places that sell counterfeit and pirated books at the same price as the listed price on the cover of the real book.

Pirated books are often cropped, smaller in size than real books, sloppily bound, and have thin spines that can easily cause pages to come loose or be missing. Pirated books are often printed with lower quality than real books, using low-quality paper, and not using special printing technologies (foil stamping, matte lamination, etc.).

Police investigate suspected fake books in Hanoi

Textbooks are a special product, providing a system of scientific , accurate and standard knowledge. Publishing textbooks is only for specialized publishers. The counterfeiting and imitation of this product will cause great consequences for students, who directly use the books.

According to the Vietnam Education Publishing House, when buying fake textbooks, pirated books, and poor quality books, consumers affect their own interests, and students are not allowed to use quality books with protected origins. The images and content in the books are blurred, unclear, and unclear, leading to impaired vision if poor quality books are used for a long time. Some content in pirated books is retyped but does not go through the same censorship steps as real books, which can distort knowledge.

Textbooks sold at the store of Ho Chi Minh City School Equipment and Books Joint Stock Company on Nguyen Tri Phuong Street, An Dong Ward

PHOTO: THUY HANG

The solution to buy standard textbooks and avoid buying fake textbooks or pirated books is that students, parents, and teachers should buy books at large, reputable bookstores with clear brands. Absolutely do not buy books floating around online or from unknown sources.

Where should I buy reputable textbooks?

Parents can buy textbooks for the Creative Horizons and Connecting Knowledge with Life series at large, reputable local bookstores or the Vietnam Education Publishing House's system of stores.

In addition, parents and students can order textbooks on online channels such as phuongnamretail.vn , Shopee giaoduc.phuongnam ..., with origin protected by the Vietnam Education Publishing House.

Parents and children buy books and school supplies at a store of the FAHASA system in August 2025.

PHOTO: THUY HANG

The official fanpage of Canh Dieu Mien Nam informs parents, students, and teachers how to confidently choose to buy Canh Dieu textbooks for the 2025-2026 school year, avoiding buying fake books. Accordingly, to have a standard, genuine set of books, you should buy them at the company's bookstore, or choose reputable local bookstores, access the Canh Dieu textbook distribution system , or you can buy online through the website www.sachcanhdieu.vn .

In addition, parents can buy full sets of textbooks Canh Dieu, Chan troi sang tao, Ket ket tri thuc voi cuoc song at FAHASA - the place that publishes textbooks, including all sets from grades 1 - 12. The textbooks are directly exploited from Vietnam Education Publishing House, Vietnam Education Publishing and Equipment Investment Joint Stock Company (VEPIC)... This system has many bookstores in provinces and cities across the country, at the same time textbooks and school supplies are sold on the e-commerce channel https://www.fahasa.com .

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/phan-biet-sach-giao-khoa-that-gia-the-nao-185250827182914259.htm