DSA notice and action: handling user reports
Article 16 of the Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065) requires every hosting service, including a website that hosts comments, to let anyone report illegal content, then to process that notice diligently and tell the person who sent it what was decided.
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The problem
Many sites have a “report” button with nothing behind it: no processing queue, no acknowledgement of receipt, no record of the decision. If a regulator checks or a decision is challenged, there is no way to show that reports were handled.
How OpenModeration handles it
In OpenModeration, every report lands in the same console as automatic moderation. It is assessed against your rules, decided automatically or by our team, and the decision is logged with its written reason in the audit log.
The result
For every report, you can show when it was received, who or what handled it, what was decided and why. The same data also feeds your transparency report.
What Article 16 requires
The main points of the obligation, and how OpenModeration helps you meet them. This summary is not legal advice.
An easy-to-access electronic mechanism
Anyone must be able to report content they consider illegal, simply, from your website or app.
A sufficiently precise notice
The notice must identify the content (its exact URL), explain why it is allegedly illegal, and in principle include the name and email address of the person sending it, plus a statement of good faith.
Timely, diligent, non-arbitrary and objective processing
Notices must be handled in a timely manner. If automated means are used, the person who sent the notice must be told.
Confirmation of receipt and notified decision
The sender receives a confirmation, then the decision taken and the available means of redress. The author of the content receives a statement of reasons (Article 17).
See the app in 20 seconds
Comments arrive, each one gets a decision and its written reason, and our team handles the doubtful cases. You have nothing to do, and you see everything in real time.
⚡ Our AI engine
An AI that keeps up with the market instead of ageing
Many moderation tools rely on a single in-house algorithm, frozen between two updates. OpenModeration works differently.
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Our own moderation AI
Trained for comment moderation and set up on your rules and your use cases.
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Cross-checked by other AIs
On delicate cases, other AI models arbitrate the decision before it is applied. Fewer mistakes, fewer wrongly hidden comments.
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Plugged into the best of the market
When a better or cheaper AI model comes out, we plug it in quickly. Nothing changes on your side.
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You benefit from AI progress
AI models get better and cheaper every year. Our architecture lets you benefit from it, instead of staying stuck on yesterday’s model.
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A silent test on your real comments
We moderate your real comments in a sandbox, alongside your current provider. Nothing changes in production.
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Compare decision by decision
For each comment, you see what we would have accepted or refused, with the written reason, next to what your provider did.
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Switch when it suits you
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Why teams choose OpenModeration
One queue
User reports and automatic moderation are handled in the same place, with the same rules.
Everything is recorded
Receipt, decision, reason and who handled it are logged in the audit log.
Hands-on support
We help you connect your report button to OpenModeration and write your moderation policy.
DSA-compliant from day one
The Digital Services Act applies to every site that hosts comments. OpenModeration covers the moderation side for you.
See how we cover the DSA →- Art. 16: user reports logged and handled by our team
- Art. 17: a written statement of reasons for every decision
- Art. 15: exportable figures for your transparency report
- Art. 20: human review of contested cases by our team
We set it up and run it for you
Just connect your pages: our team sets up the moderation on your rules and use cases, then runs it day to day. Doubtful cases and reports are handled by us, and you can step in whenever you want.
We set up your rules for you
Our team starts from your existing rules, your use cases and your real comments, sets the moderation up, then fine-tunes it over the first weeks. No work on your side.
Our team handles the doubtful cases
Doubtful cases, user reports and contested decisions are handled by our team. The system learns from every decision and proposes adjustments to your rules, which you approve in one click.
A test without risk
In sandbox mode, OpenModeration analyses your real comments and shows what it would have decided, without hiding or deleting anything.
Frequently asked questions
Does Article 16 apply to a news website?
Yes, as soon as it hosts content posted by its users, such as comments. It then acts as a hosting service within the meaning of the DSA.
Do we have to reply to every notice?
Yes. The DSA requires a confirmation of receipt when the sender has provided contact details, then information on the decision taken and the possible means of redress.
Can notices be processed automatically?
Yes, provided the sender is told and the decision stays objective and reasoned. In OpenModeration, doubtful cases are decided by a person from our team, and you see every decision and can override it.
How does this relate to the statement of reasons?
When a notice leads to content being removed or hidden, Article 17 requires you to explain the reasons to its author. OpenModeration writes this statement for every decision.
Notices handled and recorded, without the hassle.
Book a call: we look at your current setup and what is missing to comply.
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Questions? contact@openmoderation.com