Breaking the extractive digital business model: a rights-based Digital Fairness Act
EDRi’s new position paper addresses the growing threat of manipulative and unfair platform design in the EU’s digital environment. It examines how deceptive interfaces, exploitative personalisation, and addictive design practices are embedded in today’s digital economy and why existing laws fail to tackle their structural roots. Grounded in a rights-based analysis, the paper argues that the Digital Fairness Act must deliver systemic change by embedding fairness by design and by default into the digital infrastructure that shapes our lives.
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Breaking the extractive digital business model: a rights-based Digital Fairness Act
EDRi’s new position paper addresses the growing threat of manipulative and unfair platform design in the EU’s digital environment. It examines how deceptive interfaces, exploitative personalisation, and addictive design practices are embedded in today’s digital economy and why existing laws fail to tackle their structural roots. Grounded in a rights-based analysis, the paper argues that the Digital Fairness Act must deliver systemic change by embedding fairness by design and by default into the digital infrastructure that shapes our lives.
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Statement of solidarity with EDRi members and allies facing pressure for their work on platform regulation
The EDRi network strongly condemns the pressure of the US Trump administration on EDRi members and allies for our work on online platform regulation.
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A fair digital future at risk: EDRi’s contribution to the Digital Fairness Act
The European Commission closed its Call for Evidence for the upcoming Digital Fairness Act (DFA) on 24 October 2025. EDRi urged the Commission to tackle deeply harmful forms of manipulation: addictive design, deceptive design, and unfair personalisation, which undermine people’s fundamental rights to privacy, data protection, autonomy and equality. EDRi calls for strong, binding rules that embed fairness-by-design, ban exploitative features, and reinforce Europe’s digital rulebook against growing deregulatory pressure.
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Civil society files joint DSA complaint against X for targeting people with ads using their sensitive personal data
Nine civil society organisations, including EDRi, submitted a complaint against X for violating the Digital Services Act (DSA) by using people’s sensitive personal data for targeted ads. Together, we are calling for Digital Services Coordinators and the European Commission to promptly investigate X, and hold it to accountable for undermining users’ fundamental rights.
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The ePrivacy Regulation proposal has been withdrawn, but the fight for your privacy is far from over
The European Commission's withdrawal of the ePrivacy Regulation proposal is a major setback for privacy rights in Europe, driven by pressure from industry interests and national security concerns. However, EDRi remains committed to advocating for stronger privacy protections, challenging commercial and state surveillance in future legislative efforts.
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New European Commission confirmed: our takeaways on what to expect
On 1 December 2024, the new political leaders of one of the EU’s most powerful institutions – the European Commission – officially took office. As part of their nomination process, they shared their digital visions for the next five years. Spoiler alert: the fight for digital rights will be as important as ever, with data protection, encryption and privacy all on the chopping block.
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Promises unkept: The EU-US Data Privacy Framework under fire
A decade after Snowden’s revelations — and despite the public outrage they sparked — surveillance and mass data collection continue under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework (DPF), despite persistent privacy concerns. This shift reflects a reorientation of EU priorities toward economic and geopolitical interests, risking compromises on privacy and data protection.
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Unpacking digital fairness: What Europe must do now to end the tech industry’s most nefarious tactics
The EU plans to propose a Digital Fairness Act to better protect consumers from deceptive design practices, social media addiction, and pervasive online tracking. We unpack what this means and what the European Commission should do to end Big Tech’s most nefarious tactics.
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Apple must comply with the DMA, urges civil society call to European Commission
Civil society organisations and stakeholders have submitted an analysis to the European Commission about Apple’s attempts to circumvent the Digital Markets Act’s goals of allowing people freedom of choice on their own devices.
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Privacy win: LinkedIn limits ad targeting after EDRi complaint
LinkedIn gave in to pressure from civil society and Digital Services Act (DSA) enforcers based on a complaint by EDRi and three partner organisations. The platform will no longer allow advertisers to target ads based on sensitive personal data from users. That’s a big win for privacy and the DSA, but it also exposes one of the DSA’s more hidden weaknesses.
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Civil society complaint raises concern that LinkedIn is violating DSA ad targeting restrictions
On 26 February, EDRi and its partners Global Witness, Gesellschaft für Freiheitsrechte and Bits of Freedom have submitted a complaint to the European Commission regarding a potential infringement of the Digital Services Act (DSA).
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Meta plans paid subscription for users who don’t want to be tracked
In a move to circumvent EU privacy law, Platform giant Meta reportedly plans to ask users to pay up to €228 a year to preserve their fundamental right to privacy on its platforms.
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