On Thursday 20 January the European Parliament approved the proposal for a European regulation with the new rules on online intermediaries (such as big tech). This text, called Digital Services Act , was presented in 2020 and offers a new legislative framework to address challenges such as transparency of online platforms, the sale of counterfeit products, the spread of hate speech, cyber threats , limitation of competition and market domination. As for profiling, it should be easier for users to request not to be tracked.
Great satisfaction from the parliamentarians who announced the news on Twitter, highlighting how the vote was approved by a large majority , from right to left of the political spectrum.
The newly approved proposal also includes two rules approved by the European Parliament last month. For users minors , I have imposed the prohibition of tracking and using the so-called “ obscure models “, a practice used by some platforms to deceive users into sharing their personal data. The possibility of refusing the visualization of the contents according to the algorithm has not passed.
Now the Digital Services Act will face the European Council , negotiations will start on January 31st, so the road to the final text is still long . Of particular note is the fact that Democratic MPs in the United States proposed a similar law last week, so the way for big tech it is becoming increasingly uphill and respect for our rights, hopefully, more guaranteed.
