Since February 17, 2024, the Digital Services Act (DSA) applies to all online platforms in Europe. But in practice, many marketplaces haven't yet adapted their practices. Here's what the law requires — and what you have the right to expect.
What is the DSA?
The Digital Services Act is a European regulation that replaces the 2000 e-commerce directive. Its goal: make digital platforms responsible for the content and transactions that occur on them.
In plain terms: a marketplace can no longer just say "it's not us, it's the seller". They now have legal obligations to detect and remove fraudulent listings.
What platforms must concretely do
1. Identify professional sellers
Every marketplace must verify the identity of sellers who sell regularly. "Know your business customer" (KYBC) is mandatory. A scammer posting 50 fake listings per month should no longer be able to do so anonymously.
2. Process reports quickly
The DSA sets processing deadlines for user reports. Platforms must:
- Acknowledge receipt of the report
- Make a reasoned decision
- Notify the user of the outcome
No more reports disappearing into a void.
3. Publish transparency reports
Large platforms (over 45 million users in the EU) must publish semi-annual reports on:
- Number of reports received
- Content removal rates
- Disputes and appeals
4. Implement transparent recommendation systems
If a listing is recommended to you, the platform must explain why. You also have the right to see listings without a recommendation algorithm.
What changes for you as a buyer
You have more rights:
- Report a fraudulent listing and receive a response
- Know why a listing was recommended to you
- Contest a moderation decision
Platforms have more responsibilities:
- They can no longer ignore reports
- They must verify professional sellers
- They can be fined up to 6% of their global turnover for non-compliance
Why Trustee helps marketplaces comply
The DSA is in force, but enforcement is progressive. Many small and medium marketplaces don't have the teams or tools to detect fraud at scale.
That's exactly where Trustee comes in: we allow marketplaces of any size to comply with the DSA without building an internal trust & safety team. Our webhook API analyzes each listing in real time and returns a risk score.