Digital Services Act

The Digital Services Act (DSA) is a European Union regulation (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065) that modernises the legal framework for online intermediaries, replacing parts of the 2000 e-Commerce Directive. It was proposed by the European Commission in December 2020, adopted in October 2022, and became fully applicable to all in-scope services on 17 February 2024. Designated Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) and Very Large Online Search Engines (VLOSEs) — those with more than 45 million monthly active users in the EU — have been subject to the rules since late August 2023.

The DSA imposes a tiered set of obligations depending on the type and size of the service. Core requirements include:

• Notice-and-action mechanisms for users to flag illegal content;
• Transparency reporting on content moderation decisions and advertising;
• Bans on dark patterns and on targeted advertising using sensitive data or directed at minors;
• Risk assessments and independent audits for VLOPs/VLOSEs covering systemic risks such as disinformation, electoral integrity, and harm to minors;
• Researcher access to platform data under Article 40;
• A crisis response mechanism that can be triggered by the Commission.

Enforcement is split: national Digital Services Coordinators oversee smaller providers, while the European Commission directly supervises VLOPs and VLOSEs. Fines can reach 6% of global annual turnover. The first VLOP designations in April 2023 included Amazon, Apple's App Store, Booking.com, Facebook, Google Search, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, X (then Twitter), YouTube, and others. The Commission has since opened formal proceedings against several platforms, including X, TikTok, Meta, and AliExpress, on issues ranging from illegal content handling to advertising transparency.

The DSA is often paired with the Digital Markets Act (DMA) as the EU's twin pillars for regulating the digital economy, and it is increasingly cited as a template by regulators in the UK, Brazil, and elsewhere.