ANACOM, the authority responsible for the implementation in Portugal of the Digital Services Regulation (DSA), has granted Iscte the status of trusted flagger within the framework of combating disinformation, hate speech, and online fraud.
Since 2017, Iscte, through Medialab CIES, has been engaged in the monitoring, identification, and detection of disinformation, hate speech, and online fraud, both in electoral contexts and beyond. During recent electoral processes, Medialab CIES Iscte collaborated with Lusa and the National Electoral Commission in the detection of illegal online content and participated in the European Union’s Rapid Response Systems for the flagging of disinformation, through its involvement in the Iberifier network.
Within the scope of this designation, Iscte undertakes the commitment to produce an annual report on the notifications submitted and will benefit from priority access to major digital platforms for the flagging of content found on those platforms that may contain potentially illegal speech, content with negative effects on civic discourse and elections, or content posing risks to public security, as well as content that promotes scams and fraud or incites violence. Due to their harmful nature to healthy coexistence in the public media space, such content, once reported, should be handled as a priority by the major digital platforms operating in the European market.
The status of trusted flagger is established under the Digital Services Regulation (DSA), in force in Portugal since February 2024, and is awarded by ANACOM, in its capacity as Digital Services Coordinator, the authority responsible for the implementation of the Regulation within the national territory. Iscte expressed its intention to apply for trusted flagger status in April 2024 and formally submitted its application in September 2025. As a public-interest institution, Iscte aims to contribute, within the limits of its competences and capacities, to a healthy and fair online environment.
This status is granted by the Digital Services Coordinator after ensuring that the applicant trusted flagger possesses specialised knowledge and specific competences for the detection, identification, and notification of illegal content, is independent from the platforms, and carries out its activities in a diligent, accurate, and objective manner.
Within the scope of this designation, Medialab CIES also commits to producing an annual report detailing the notifications submitted, including the identification of the platform or platforms concerned, the type of content flagged, and the measures taken by the platform to mitigate it.
It should be recalled that the Digital Services Regulation imposes on major online platforms—identified as providers of online services with more than 45 million users in the European Union—a set of rules aimed at mitigating the negative effects of the content they distribute on the media ecosystem and on civic discourse. Currently, the Digital Services Regulation identifies as major platforms several social networks—Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snapchat, TikTok, and X—as well as search engines—Google Search and Bing—and also travel websites, mapping services, and app stores.
