EU proposes Digital Fairness Act to strengthen online consumer protections

The European Commission has unveiled a Digital Fairness Act (DFA), described as the “most significant” upgrade to consumer protection in over twenty years.

The draft legislation targets hard‑to‑cancel subscriptions, misleading social‑media marketing and “dark‑pattern” design tactics that pressure shoppers, such as fake urgency messages claiming only a few items remain.

Henna Virkkunen, EU executive vice‑president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, said the DFA will complement existing rules like the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act, which have together generated fines of about €2 billion.

Key provisions include bans on unfair personalisation, obscure dynamic pricing, automatic renewal of free trials, and the use of loot‑box‑style mechanisms that mimic gambling for children. The Act also seeks greater transparency from social‑media influencers and clearer information on repeat in‑app purchases.

Under the proposed changes to the Consumer Protection Cooperation Regulation, the Commission would gain direct investigative powers in large‑scale cases and could levy fines of up to 6 % of a trader’s worldwide annual turnover.

The Computer & Communications Industry Association warned the DFA could create an “enforcement maze” with overlapping national and EU authorities, raising compliance costs.

Source: Silicon Republic. Photo: Tim Diercks / Pexels.