Just for my understanding: this wouldn't have happened if the user in question would've used a VPN and/or TOR right?

Don't get me wrong, I really don't like this in Thailand and it's absurd that you would even need something like that. As a foreigner visiting Thailand I don't feel that comfortable with my browsing habits. Usually I trust a local provider enough to just browse and not care about what I'm looking up, Thailand is not one of those places and I always use a VPN. (Mostly routed to Singapore)