Protect European Internet users from digital abuses: this is the ambition of the Digital Services Act, a European regulation adopted in July 2022 and certain provisions of which come into force from this Friday for giants such as Meta, Amazon, Google, TikTok or Twitter .
This dense text imposes a series of obligations on social networks, search engines and e-commerce sites. Much will happen behind the scenes of his enterprises. But European Internet users will also benefit from new rights and unprecedented functionalities on the most popular online services. Le Figaro takes stock.
PODCAST – What is the Digital Services Act and what does it change for us?
The Digital Services Act places strong emphasis on the need for platforms to better moderate illegal content circulating on their services. The Commission will be attentive to the number of moderators employed and whether ‘rare’ languages of the Union, such as Romanian or Finnish, are not outsourced compared to French or Spanish.
On the side of Internet users, two major innovations will make their appearance. First of all, social networks, e-commerce sites and video platforms like YouTube will have to make it much easier for users to report problematic content (threats, pornography, terrorism, cyberbullying, insults, etc.). Today, these buttons are not always easily found. And the forms to be completed are not the most explicit… The DSA puts an end to this, and also obliges the platforms to keep the Internet user informed of the consequences of the processing of his report.
The European text also protects Internet users from errors of judgment by moderators. Users must be notified as soon as one of their publications is deleted, that the visibility of their accounts is reduced or that certain functionalities are withdrawn (for example, the sending of private messages). And the platform will have to explain why it made this decision. Thanks to the DSA, the “moderate” Internet user will have the possibility of contesting the sanction and requesting a new examination of his file.
It is the obligation of the Digital Services Act which will be the most visible for Internet users. From Friday, social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, TikTok and Instagram will have to offer their European users an alternative to their news feed, whose content is currently selected and prioritized by artificial intelligence based on the profile of the internet user.
This personalized, so-called algorithmic sorting is the subject of all criticism. It would not only make these services addictive, but they would also plunge users into an endless hole of increasingly extreme content. Just a few clicks can separate the search for weight loss tips from videos promoting anorexia…
Europeans will be able to opt out of this personalized feed. Only publications from accounts to which the Internet user is already subscribed will be displayed on Facebook and Instagram, and these will be listed in chronological order, from the most recent to the oldest. Gone are the “suggested videos” from total strangers. And the photos of friends that the algorithm considered unworthy of interest will find their place on the application.
The biggest change will be on TikTok. If the Internet user wishes, the formidable “For you” thread, made up of finely selected videos according to their interests, will give way to the most popular videos in France. It might be easier to get off the Chinese app…
The European Parliament’s review of the Digital Services Act in 2021 gave rise to a proposal that caused a stir at the time: to ban all forms of targeted advertising on the internet, unless the Internet user so wishes. This scenario, which had given cold sweats to the entire digital ecosystem, gave birth to much more moderate rules.
The final text only cracks down on certain forms of targeted advertising deemed too dangerous. It thus becomes prohibited for brands and organizations to seek to reach Internet users based on their political opinions, religion, sexual orientation, ethnic origins or state of health.
The DSA also prohibits highly personalized ad targeting to Internet users under the age of 18. No question, for example, of exploiting the themes of the videos most watched by a high school student on TikTok to bombard him with advertisements for sneakers or makeup. But it would be ridiculous to show secondary school students advertisements for home insurance or baby diapers… Advertisers will therefore retain the possibility of activating targeting on the adolescent public, according to their age and their country of residence. But without going any further. The Meta group complied on this point in January.
Why do I never see my cousins stories? Why are my Amazon search results different than my spouse’s? Why are some comments featured more than others on Facebook? The systems for sorting the content of digital platforms, whether social networks, e-commerce sites or search engines, are an object unknown to Internet users. The Digital Services Act requires these services to be transparent: the regulation requires them to explain how they work in plain language that everyone can understand.
That’s why Google launched a site this week called the Center for Transparency where it details “the metrics, factors, and signals that influence” search results and recommendations on Google Play, Google Travel, YouTube, or Google Play. GoogleDiscover.
Meta has also published an even more detailed guide – while remaining educational – explaining how stories are classified, or how its artificial intelligences refine over time the selection of publications that go up high on the news feed. Platforms must also highlight the options available to their users to influence these recommendations, and even stop them.