Google has announced a range of new measures to comply with the incoming EU Digital Services Act (DSA), including new transparency elements that will provide more oversight into ad targeting, enforcement policies, and more.
For the most part, however, Google says that it’s largely in compliance with the DSA requirements already, having already implemented restrictions on personalized ads for minors, facilitated insights into policy violations, and other measures that are now being mandated by the new law.
As per Google:
“We have long been aligned with the broad goals of the DSA and have devoted significant resources into tailoring our programs to meet its specific requirements. We have also expressed our concerns about potential unintended consequences, such as the risk of making it easier for bad actors to abuse our services and spread harmful misinformation by providing too much information about our enforcement approach. More broadly we will continue to share our experience on how regulations can address harmful content while ensuring people continue to enjoy the benefits of the web.”
This has long been a concern for Google, that by providing too much insight into how its systems operate, that essentially lays out a roadmap for scammers and spammers to avoid detection. But even so, Google is moving to comply with the full DSA rules, which aim to give more power to users in both understanding and controlling how their personal data is used.
In expansion of its existing processes, Google’s further building out its Ads Transparency Center, in order to meet more specific DSA provisions.
The new expansion will provide additional information on targeting for ads served in the European Union, while on another front, Google will also broaden data access for researchers looking to understand more about how its systems work.
Google will also facilitate increased transparency around moderation decisions, and provide additional contact points, while it’s also updating its reporting and appeals processes “to provide specified types of information and context about our decisions”.
So, essentially, Google is going to be more open about how its systems function, for EU users specifically, but there will also be new insights for those in all regions.
Which could be handy for research purposes, though it will also be interesting to see, as Google notes, whether it further empowers scammers as well.
Google says that it’ll continue to meet with EU officials to monitor the impacts of the changes, and discuss potential revisions of the DSA in future.