Digital Services Act: Procedure for granting the status of trusted notifier
ANCOM launched in public consultation the draft decision regarding the procedure for granting the status of trusted notifier. The draft decision establishes the conditions and procedure for granting, suspending, terminating and revoking the status of trusted notifier, according to the Digital Services Regulation (DSA Regulation) .
The role of trusted notifiers is very important in the context of the application of the DSA Regulation.
The draft decision seeks to establish the procedure for granting the status of trusted notifier , upon request, to any legally constituted entity whose main place of establishment or whose residence is in Romania and which demonstrates that it meets all the conditions provided by the DSA Regulation.
The procedure for granting the status of trusted notifier
In order to obtain the status of trusted notifier, according to the DSA Regulation, the applicant entity must demonstrate that it meets the following conditions:
- has specialized knowledge and specific skills in detecting, identifying and notifying illegal content;
- is independent of any online platform providers;
- carry out the activities in such a way as to transmit notifications with diligence, accuracy and objectivity.
Thus, according to the draft decision, the applicant submits a request for granting the status of trusted notifier by filling in a standard form , together with all the documents and evidence proving that he meets the granting conditions.
The standard form includes, at least, information related to the form of organization, name, identification data, field of competence, language(s) in which it is competent, information related to human and technical resources, the method and sources of financing, the organizational structure and information about the decision-making process, the detailed description of how the activity is carried out and declarations on your own responsibility regarding the fulfillment of the eligibility conditions and the veracity of the information contained in the application or in the attached documents.
The application accompanied by the supporting documents is sent to ANCOM, in electronic format, as registered in electronic form, to which a qualified electronic signature has been incorporated, attached or associated under the conditions of the special legislation regarding electronic signatures, to the dedicated e-mail address tf .dsa@ancom.ro .
ANCOM will notify the applicant of the decision taken, including in case of rejection of the request.
Who can be a reliable notifier?
As an example, the entities that can apply for the status of trusted notifier can be industrial and commercial associations (organizations of intellectual property rights holders), NGOs (consumer protection organizations, minors protection organizations, human rights protection, environmental protection organizations, animal rights protection organizations), public entities such as the online content reporting units of the national law enforcement authorities or the Agency European Union for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) or regulatory authorities (with the exception of the national coordinator for digital services).
Types of illegal content that can be detected, identified and notified
The phrase "illegal content" is assessed depending on the existence of the national or European legal framework in force. The types of illegal content that can be detected, identified and notified by trusted notifiers depending on the field of competence can be included in categories such as:
- Data protection and privacy violations;
- Unlawful speech;
- Violation of intellectual property rights and other commercial rights;
- Conduct without consent regarding images or personal information;
- Online harassment or intimidation;
- Pornography or sexual content;
- Facts concerning minors;
- Animal Facts;
- Illegal/counterfeit products, etc.
Implementation of the DSA Regulation in Romania
In order to implement the provisions of the DSA Regulation in Romania, the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digitization and ANCOM have initiated a draft law that establishes the national legislative measures necessary for the application of the provisions of the European norm, a normative act adopted by the Parliament and in the process of promulgation.
The draft normative act adopted by the Parliament designates ANCOM as the national coordinator of digital services and establishes, among other things, the attributions for the elaboration and adoption of the secondary legislation necessary for the application of the primary norm in Romania.
The public consultation process
The draft decision regarding the procedure for granting the status of trusted notifier can be consulted here , the interested persons being invited to formulate and submit observations and proposals until 04.04.2024, at the address of ANCOM's headquarters (Str. Delea Noua no .2, sector 3, Bucharest), through the online Registry or through the Authority's regional offices. Observations can also be sent by fax to the number +40 372 845 402 or by e-mail to the address consultare@ancom.ro .