The Digital Services Act: A Plain-English Guide

The Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065) is a landmark piece of EU legislation governing how online platforms, marketplaces, search engines, social networks, and other online intermediaries must operate within the EU. It fully applied to all in-scope services from February 17, 2024.

The DSA replaces the E-Commerce Directive (2000/31/EC) for intermediary liability and content moderation rules. It establishes a tiered system of obligations based on the size and nature of the digital service — with heavier requirements for Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) and Very Large Online Search Engines (VLOSEs).

Enforcement rests primarily with the Digital Services Coordinators (DSCs) designated in each EU member state, with the European Commission taking direct enforcement authority over VLOPs and VLOSEs.

The DSA applies to all online intermediary services with EU users, but obligations increase by tier:

• All intermediary services: Basic liability rules, transparency in terms of service, content removal notifications, and cooperation with authorities.
• Hosting services and platforms: Notice-and-action mechanisms, statement of reasons for content removal, internal complaint handling systems, and out-of-court dispute resolution access.
• Online marketplaces: Additional seller verification requirements (Know Your Business Customer), traceability of traders, random checks on listed products.
• Very Large Online Platforms (100M+ EU users): Annual systemic risk assessments, independent audits, algorithmic transparency, advertising repositories, data sharing with researchers, crisis response protocols.

Even businesses below the VLOP threshold face significant compliance requirements:

• Transparency reporting: Platforms hosting user content must publish annual transparency reports covering: content moderation volume, automated detection actions, notices received, and appeals processed.
• Notice and action: A clear mechanism for users and authorities to flag illegal content — with documented processes for reviewing and acting on notices within defined timeframes.
• Statement of reasons: When content is removed or accounts suspended, users must receive an explanation (unless this would compromise law enforcement operations).
• Internal complaint handling: Users must have access to a free internal complaint system to challenge content moderation decisions.
• Advertising transparency: Users must be able to identify advertising content, the identity of the advertiser, and why they were targeted — with no targeting based on sensitive personal data.
• Trusted flaggers: Platforms must prioritise and process notices submitted by DSC-certified trusted flaggers.

Fines under the DSA can reach 6% of global annual turnover for violations of the regulation's requirements. Repeated non-compliance can lead to temporary access restrictions (for VLOPs and VLOSEs, the Commission can impose platform suspensions).

The Commission has already opened formal proceedings against several major platforms. National DSCs are ramping up enforcement capacity across all EU member states, with smaller platforms increasingly in scope.

• Scope assessment — determining your DSA tier and applicable obligations
• Transparency report templates — covering content moderation metrics, automated detection actions, and appeals data
• Notice-and-action workflow documentation — logging, processing, and outcome tracking
• Statement of reasons workflow — generating legally-framed removal explanations
• Advertising transparency documentation — advertiser identity and targeting basis records
• Annual reporting automation — pulling data from your content moderation logs into DSA-compliant report formats
• Regulatory alerts: Commission and DSC enforcement decisions and guidance updates