Digital Services Coordinators

The Commission and the national Digital Service Coordinators (DSCs) are responsible for supervising, enforcing and monitoring the DSA. 

Each Member State has to designate a Digital Services Coordinator (DSC), who is responsible for all matters relating to the application and enforcement of the DSA in that country. 

To date, Estonia, Poland, and Slovakia still have to designate their Digital Services Coordinators. In addition, despite designating their Digital Services Coordinators, Cyprus, Czechia and Portugal still have to empower them with the necessary powers and competences to carry out their tasks, including the imposition of sanctions in cases of non-compliance. On 24 April, the European Commission therefore decided to open infringement procedures by sending letters of formal notice to those six Member States.

Find your Digital Services Coordinator

The DCSs are, in principle, competent to supervise and enforce compliance with the DSA by providers of intermediary services established in their territory, regardless of their number of users.

While the Commission enjoys exclusive competence to supervise, enforce and monitor compliance by Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) and Very Large Online Search Engines (VLOSEs) with the enhanced due diligence obligations the DSA imposes upon them to address systemic risks, the Commission and the national authorities share competence for all other obligations imposed on VLOPs and VLOSEs under the DSA.

Member States may assign specific tasks to other competent authorities, but the Digital Service Coordinator (DSC) remains responsible for ensuring coordination at national level.

Together, the Digital Services Coordinators ensure that the DSA is properly enforced throughout the EU. They cooperate with each other, other national authorities, the Board and the Commission.

DSCs have the power to request access to data, order inspections and impose fines on providers of intermediary services in their territory in the event of an infringement. They are also responsible for certifying “trusted flaggers”, independent organisations who are experts in detecting, identifying and removing illegal content, and out-of-court dispute settlement bodies.

For monitoring the due diligence obligations of very large online platforms and search engines, the Commission enjoys exclusive competence.

When to contact a Digital Services Coordinator

Complaints by individuals are going to be an essential contribution to an effective enforcement of the DSA.

For this purpose, if while navigating on a platform you encounter an infringement of the DSA rules, you have the right to lodge a complaint alleging to the Digital Services Coordinator of the Member State where you are located or established.

Trusted Flaggers

The Digital Services Coordinators are responsible for awarding the status of “trusted flaggers” to entities based in their Member State.

Trusted flaggers are, for example, civil society organisations with particular expertise and competence in detecting, identifying, and notifying illegal content.

They should be independent from online platforms. Online platforms must ensure that notices submitted by trusted flaggers are given priority and are processed timely.

Out-of-court settlement bodies

The Digital Services Coordinators are also responsible for certifying out-of-court settlement bodies. To appeal a decision from a provider of online platforms, users can now choose to refer to an out-of-court dispute settlement, without prejudging the possibility to initiate, at any stage, judicial proceedings.