Digital Fairness Act

Key points

The EESC:

• acknowledges that the Digital Fairness Act (DFA) should consolidate existing EU consumer law, by addressing gaps in consumer protection and clarifying how existing rules apply in digital markets;
• stresses that the proposal should also clarify the interaction between different legal instruments and further harmonise the rules across the European Union (EU), strengthening the Digital Single Market, providing clarity for all stakeholders, supporting the EU’s simplification agenda and ensuring a high level of consumer protection enshrined in the TFEU;
• supports the Commission’s approach of strengthening the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) enforcement mechanism, including vis-à-vis third-country traders, potentially by centralising enforcement powers for certain widespread cross-border infringements within the EU;
• recommends a balanced framework that reaffirms the principles of channel and technology neutrality, while allowing for targeted provisions in specific technological or commercial contexts. The focus should be on the actual or reasonably foreseeable impact of a commercial practice on consumers, rather than solely on the formal characteristics of a particular design or commercial technique. It further recognises the extensive references to fairness by design in the Digital Fairness Fitness Check as an idea with growing support among many stakeholders;
• recommends that the current concept of the average and vulnerable consumer be reassessed in the context of digital markets, taking due account of the influence of cognitive biases on consumer behaviour;
• recommends that the DFA harmonise and clarify influencers’ obligations under the UCPD to clearly disclose commercial communications and prohibit the promotion of harmful products, in particular to minors. It also calls for a harmonised EU definition of a digital influencer;
• takes note of the recommendations published on 13 July 2026 by the Special Panel on child safety online and stresses the need for a holistic approach addressing both the causes and effects of harmful online experiences involving all relevant stakeholders, including families, educational institutions, public authorities and civil society. Digital literacy and skills should be an integral part of this approach.