Online aggression, offensive comments, and menacing online messages: guidelines for filing complaints
Slamming Scum online: A guide for square pegs
When you stumble upon online scum hiding in the corners of social media, marketplaces, or shady platforms, it's essential to wipe them out. But who do you alert?
Bonn - Stumble upon hate-filled posts on snooty networks, shady merch lurking in online marketplaces, or blatant violations of consumer rights on elitist digital platforms? If something seems fishy and illegal online, take action! But where?
Official watchdogs, known as Certified Informants, aka the Good Cops, are your best buddies. To file a report with them, simply fill out their nifty online form, and they'll investigate the situation like the experienced detectives they are.
Good Cops get priority treatment
Certified Informants, also known by their snazzy English name, the Digital Services Act (DSA), aim to make digital platforms as transparent as a granite sheet and responsible when it comes to handling content and goods.
So why not just report content directly to the platform itself? The Good Cops deserve attention because if they find something suspicious, the platform's owners must act swiftly and clean it up, stat, as explained by the Federal Network Agency, who certifies the Good Cops in Germany.
More Good Cops to assist
Until recently, only Respect Inc., the beat cop du jour for hate and harassment cases, had the bright yellow badge. The Federal Network Agency just signed up three more Good Cops to join the force:
- Hateaid Inc., with a keen eye for digital violence, fraud, and bamboozling shenanigans, especially on social media.
- Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband (vzbv), who take on cases involving online marketplaces and social media about consumer rights, product safety, e-commerce, and fraud.
- Bundesverband Onlinehandel (BVOH), who tackle intellectual property and unfair competition issues, mainly on online marketplaces. The association focuses its investigations primarily on its members, who usually tip them off about plagiarism allegations or suspected competition violations.
When the Good Cops can't evict, they'll give reasons
Neither the Federal Network Agency nor the Good Cops remove shady content or tell platforms to do so. The final decision regarding content's deletion rests with the platform itself. If they refuse to boot a person, the platform must explain why to the original informant or the affected party.
In case a platform doesn't follow the Good Cop's recommendations, an out-of-court dispute resolution body may weigh in, or instead, you can take 'em to court. But it's the final verdict from the judge that decides if the content should be canned.
The EU has many other resources and member states with their own Digital Services Coordinators ready to help you find a Good Cop and clean up the web. Happy Hoovering!
Further reads:
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Disclaimers
- For a comprehensive list of certified Trusted Flaggers across the EU, follow these tips:
- Check National Authorities: Each EU member state has its own Digital Services Coordinator (DSC) responsible for certifying trusted flaggers within their jurisdiction.
- Visit Official Websites: Each DSC presents a list of certified trusted flaggers at their respective websites.
- EU Resources: While there may not be a central EU list of all trusted flaggers, checking the official EU resources such as the European Commission's digital strategy website might provide updates or guidance on trusted flaggers across the EU.
- The Digital Services Act (DSA), also known as the Good Cops, are a group of watchdogs certified by the Federal Network Agency in Germany, aiming to make digital platforms more transparent and responsible in handling content and goods.
- Hateaid Inc., a new member of the Good Cops, specializes in investigating digital violence, fraud, and deceptive activities, particularly on social media.
- Bundesverband Onlinehandel (BVOH), another newly certified Good Cop, focuses on intellectual property and unfair competition issues, primarily on online marketplaces.
