On February 21, 2025, the European Commission introduced a comprehensive toolkit aimed at guiding digital services coordinators in the application of the Digital Services Act (DSA) during electoral processes. This initiative is particularly relevant for very large online platforms (VLOPs) and very large online search engines (VLOSEs).

The toolkit outlines best practices and approaches that national authorities have adopted in 2024 to address risks that could impact electoral processes. Key concerns include hate speech, online harassment, and public opinion manipulation, especially regarding content generated by artificial intelligence and identity theft.

The recommendations provided in the toolkit focus on four critical areas: stakeholder management, media communication and education, incident response, and risk monitoring and analysis related to elections. These guidelines build upon electoral guidelines published in March 2024 and the experiences gained from implementing the recently integrated code of conduct on misinformation under the DSA.

The DSA aims to create a safer and more responsible online environment by imposing specific rules on online intermediary services, with additional obligations for very large platforms that reach over 10% of the 450 million consumers in Europe. The Luxembourg competition authority acts as the Digital Services Coordinator (DSC) to ensure proper enforcement of these regulations in Luxembourg.