What is the Digital Services Act?

The Digital Services Act, or DSA, is an EU regulation that sets responsibilities for online intermediary services, including hosting providers, social networks and online marketplaces. It addresses illegal content, platform transparency and the protection of people using digital services.

The DSA became generally applicable on 17 February 2024. Certain obligations applied earlier to the first designated very large online platforms and search engines.

Requirements depend on the type and size of the service. They can include:

• Providing ways to report illegal content.

• Explaining content-moderation decisions.

• Clearly identifying advertisements and the parties behind them.

• Restricting advertising based on profiling using sensitive personal data.

• Prohibiting profiling-based advertising to users known with reasonable certainty to be minors.

The European Commission’s DSA explanation describes the different responsibilities.

A business does not become an online platform merely because it owns a website. Its activities determine which obligations apply.

For advertising teams, the distinction between contextual and behavioural advertising is particularly relevant. The DSA’s advertising restrictions operate alongside GDPR and ePrivacy cookie requirements; obtaining consent does not override an advertising practice that the DSA prohibits.