Transparency (DSA)

Transparency (DSA)

TrustFair.de is an evaluation platform at:

https://www.trustfair.de

The operator of the platform is:

Scriptfabrik B.V.
Pastoor Jacobsweg 27
6226 VV Maastricht
Netherlands

E-mail: welcome@trustfair.de
Website: https://www.trustfair.de

Hereinafter referred to as “TrustFair.de”, “Platform”, “we” or “Platform Operator”.

This information informs about the handling of user-generated content, reports of alleged illegal content, moderation decisions and complaints.

Relevant legal bases are in particular:

  • Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 on a Digital Services Act (DSA);

  • the Dutch DSA Implementing Act (Uitvoeringswet Digital Services Regulation);

  • In addition, other applicable Union law and Dutch law.

The DSA is a directly applicable EU regulation and not a directive. These notices in particular supplement our General Terms and Conditions, Terms of Use, Evaluation Guidelines, Data Protection Policy and the notification and complaints procedure.

TrustFair.de stores on behalf of users in particular ratings, experience reports, company answers and other user-generated content and makes them available to the public.

TrustFair.de is therefore according to current legal classification in any case provider of a hosting service and basically an online platform in the sense of the DSA, as far as the legal requirements are met.

TrustFair.de is not by the European Commission according to Art. 33 DSA named very large online platform (VLOP).

TrustFair.de does not currently allow the conclusion of distance contracts between consumers and third parties via the platform. The special DSA obligations for online marketplaces therefore only apply if corresponding marketplace functions are introduced in the future.

The DSA provides for exemptions from certain additional platform requirements for providers considered to be micro or small enterprises within the meaning of Recommendation 2003/361/EC.

Microenterprises are in principle companies with fewer than ten employees and a maximum of 2 million euros in annual turnover or annual balance sheet total. Small enterprises are generally companies with fewer than 50 employees and a maximum of 10 million euros in annual turnover or annual balance sheet total. Affiliates and partner companies must be taken into account in the calculation.

The exceptions concern in particular certain obligations relating to internal complaint systems, out-of-court dispute resolution, trusted whistleblowers, abuse measures, additional platform transparency obligations, advertising and recommendation systems. The general obligations for intermediation and hosting services, in particular contact points, understandable terms of use, notification procedures and justifications for moderation decisions, may nevertheless apply.

If TrustFair.de does not or no longer meets the requirements of a micro or small company, the additional applicable obligations will be implemented within the statutory deadlines. The following voluntarily offered procedures do not constitute a further legal obligation, as far as a legal exception applies.

The single electronic contact point for Member State authorities, the European Commission and the European Digital Services Committee shall be:

E-mail: welcome@trustfair.de

Please use as subject as possible ‘DSA authority request’.

Communication is possible in German, Dutch and English. Legally binding orders must meet the requirements of the DSA and the applicable law.

Users, companies, reporting persons and other recipients of the service can reach our DSA contact point at:

E-mail: welcome@trustfair.de

Recommended subject lines:

  • DSA notification of unlawful content;

  • DSA complaint;

  • Complaint against Moderation Decision;

  • Question about the DSA.

Communication must not be carried out exclusively by automated systems. Where necessary, a human contact facility shall be provided.

7. Reporting of alleged illegal content by type. 16 DSA

Any person or entity can report a content stored on TrustFair.de if it considers it unlawful.

A DSA message should contain the following information:

  1. a duly substantiated explanation as to why the content is intended to be illegal;

  2. the exact electronic reference, in particular the full URL, and other information enabling unambiguous identification;

  3. the name and e-mail address of the reporting person or entity, unless the legal exception applies to certain offences;

  4. a statement that the information provided is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, correct and complete.

Notifications can be sent via the reporting function provided on the platform or by email to welcome@trustfair.de submitted.

Possible reasons for reporting are in particular:

  • false or unlawful claims of fact;

  • insults, threats or unlawful hate speech;

  • unauthorised publication of personal data;

  • infringement of copyright, trademark or other rights;

  • disclosure of confidential information or business secrets;

  • fraud, phishing, spam or other unlawful offers;

  • Fake reviews insofar as they violate applicable law;

  • other content infringing Union law or the law of a Member State.

A notification by type. 16 DSA concerns illegality. Violations that only affect our Platform Rules may also be reported, but will be considered as a rule violation.

If electronic contact details are available, we will confirm receipt of a DSA notification without undue delay and will inform you of our decision and of existing legal remedies upon completion of the examination.

Notifications are processed in a timely, careful, objective and arbitrary manner. In particular, account shall be taken of:

  • the justification and evidence of the notification;

  • the specific content and context;

  • the rights and legitimate interests of all parties;

  • freedom of expression and information;

  • privacy, data protection and corporate rights;

  • relevant Union and national law;

  • our GTC, Terms of Use and Rating Guidelines.

A message does not automatically remove content. A negative valuation is not removed solely because it does not please a rated entity or is economically disadvantageous.

If, through a sufficiently accurate and justified notification, actual knowledge of an unlawful content is gained, we act swiftly as far as removal or blocking of access is legally necessary.

Depending on the individual case, we can in particular:

  • leave content online unchanged;

  • limit the visibility of a content;

  • temporarily hide a content;

  • Remove all or part of a content;

  • identify a content or profile;

  • reject publication or evaluation;

  • request evidence or an opinion;

  • limit the functions of a user account;

  • temporarily or permanently suspend a user account;

  • restrict payments or paid functions to the extent that this is contractually and legally permissible;

  • deactivate links or external content;

  • take other legally permitted measures.

In selecting the measure, we take into account in particular the nature, severity, frequency and consequences of the infringement and the rights of the parties involved.

If we impose a restriction on the basis of the assumption that a content is unlawful or violates our terms of use, the affected user will in principle receive a clear and concrete justification.

The justification shall include, where applicable:

  • the nature and geographical or temporal scope of the measure;

  • the facts and circumstances on which the decision is based;

  • whether the decision is based on a notification or on its own examination;

  • information on the use of automated means in detection or decision-making;

  • in the case of illegal content, the legal basis used and a declaration of illegality;

  • in the case of breaches of Platform Rules, the relevant contractual provision and a declaration of breach;

  • available internal and external remedies.

A justification can only be omitted or restricted in the cases provided for by law, for example if disclosure would violate legal obligations or jeopardize the security of third parties.

Affected users and reporting persons can have a moderation decision verified by e-mail:

E-mail: welcome@trustfair.de
Subject: “Appeal against Moderation Decision”

The complaint should contain the content concerned, the decision, the date, the related account or profile, a statement of reasons and existing evidence.

As far as Art. 20 DSA, the internal complaint system is made available free of charge and electronically at least six months from the notification of the decision. Complaints are examined in a timely, careful, objective and non-discriminatory manner. The verification shall be carried out under the supervision of appropriately qualified staff and not exclusively automated.

As far as TrustFair.de is concerned due to the micro or small business regulation of Art. 20 DSA is excluded, the examination can be offered voluntarily in a comparable form.

As far as Art. 21 DSA is applicable, affected users can call an out-of-court dispute resolution body certified under the DSA. The competent body may in principle be chosen freely from the list of certified bodies published by the European Commission, provided that it is competent for the dispute in question.

Out-of-court dispute resolution shall be without prejudice to the right to judicial protection. In principle, the decision of a dispute settlement body is not binding on the parties unless otherwise provided for by applicable law.

The regulations on consumer dispute resolution and the former EU ODR portal must be distinguished from this.

As far as Art. 22 DSA applicable, reports from recognised trusted whistleblowers are handled as a matter of priority and without undue delay. The recognition as a trustworthy whistleblower is carried out by the responsible Digital Services Coordinator.

Prioritized processing does not automatically mean that the reported content is unlawful or removed. These reports are also examined objectively.

The reporting and complaints system must not be abused. In particular, misuse can occur in the case of:

  • frequent and manifestly unfounded reports or complaints;

  • repeated provision of obviously unlawful content;

  • manipulated evidence;

  • reporting to suppress permitted criticism;

  • threats or pressure;

  • coordinated manipulation attempts.

As far as Art. 23 DSA, we may, after prior warning and individual case examination, suspend the processing of reports or complaints or the use of the service for a reasonable period of time. In particular, the number, severity, ratio, intention and consequences of the behavior are taken into account.

TrustFair.de may use technical systems to detect spam, multiple reviews, manipulation patterns, abusive accounts or other anomalies.

Such systems can mark, prioritize, or manually audit content or accounts. If automated systems are used for a moderation decision, this is specified in the decision statement, if there is a legal obligation to provide information.

Complaints against moderation decisions are not exclusively decided automatically, as far as art. 20 DSA is applicable.

When assessing an assessment, account may be taken in particular of whether:

  • their own experience has been clearly demonstrated;

  • statements of fact are plausible and verifiable;

  • the assessment contains unauthorised personal or confidential data;

  • contain insults, threats or unlawful statements;

  • there are signs of a fake, multiple or convenience assessment;

  • there is a conflict of interest or manipulation;

  • the evaluation violates applicable law or platform rules.

We may request appropriate evidence. Unnecessary personal data and sensitive information should be blacked out before transmission.

A company verification confirms only certain verified information or representation powers. It does not guarantee the quality, reliability or legality of all the services provided by the Company.

Ratings and profiles can be displayed according to selectable criteria such as timeliness, date, star rating or relevance. A rating score can be based in particular on the published star ratings taken into account in the calculation.

As far as a recommendation system in the sense of the art. 27 DSA is used and this provision is applicable, the most important parameters as well as their relative importance are clearly and comprehensibly explained in the terms of use or directly on the relevant function. This also includes whether and how users can influence sorting.

Paid services do not entitle you to the removal of allowed negative reviews or an artificial improvement of the rating score.

18. Advertising and commercial content

Advertising, sponsored content, premium placements and commercial highlights are clearly marked as such.

As far as Art. 26 DSA applicable, users must be able to recognize in real time:

  • that it is advertising;

  • on whose behalf the advertisement is displayed;

  • who paid for the advertising, if this is another person or entity;

  • the main parameters used for the selection of advertising and how they can be changed, if necessary.

Advertising must not be designed in such a way as to confuse it with an independent user review. Paid functions must not be used to suppress permitted criticism or manipulate the rating score.

Legal administrative orders to take action against unlawful content or to provide information will be issued in accordance with the nature. 9 and 10 DSA and the applicable law.

If we become aware of information which gives rise to a suspicion that a crime has been committed, is committed or is likely to be committed which poses a danger to the life or safety of a person, we shall inform in accordance with the nature. 18 DSA immediately the competent law enforcement or judicial authorities.

TrustFair.de is according to art. 8 DSA is not obliged to generally monitor all stored content or to actively search for facts that indicate illegal activities.

Voluntary, proportionate checks, technical protection measures, random checks and incidental checks shall remain possible. Such measures alone do not lose the liability privilege under the DSA.

As far as TrustFair.de is not covered by the statutory exception for micro or small companies, transparency reports according to art. 15 and, where applicable, Art. 24 DSA published in the legally prescribed rhythm and format.

Since 1 July 2025, the harmonised requirements of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2835 have to be observed. The reports may contain, in particular, information on administrative orders, reports, moderation measures, automated systems, complaints and processing times.

As far as a legal exception applies, TrustFair.de can publish voluntary transparency reports.

As far as the publication obligation according to art. 24 par. 2 DSA, TrustFair.de publishes the average monthly number of active users in the European Union at least every six months. The calculation is made in accordance with the applicable EU law requirements.

If TrustFair.de is exempted from this obligation as a micro or small company, this number of users does not have to be stated publicly. Regardless of this, necessary calculations and information are made to competent authorities in accordance with the DSA.

Personal data may be processed for reports, complaints, evidence and moderation procedures. Details for purposes, legal bases, recipients, storage period and data subject rights can be found in our data protection declaration:

https://www.trustfair.de/legal/privacy

Please provide only data that is necessary for the respective examination. Unnecessary or particularly sensitive information should be blacked out.

For providers established in the Netherlands, the Autoriteit Consument & Markt (ACM) The responsible Digital Services Coordinator. The ACM oversees the majority of DSA obligations. The Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (AP) is responsible under Dutch law for certain data protection-related DSA regulations.

Users may also lodge a complaint about an alleged DSA violation with the Digital Services Coordinator of the Member State where they are resident or established. For users residing in Germany, this is basically the Federal Network Agency. For very large online platforms and very large online search engines, the European Commission has specific supervisory and enforcement powers.

We update these notices when legal requirements, authority responsibilities, platform functions or moderation procedures change.

The current version is published on TrustFair.de. Significant changes to the moderation rules are communicated transparently and in compliance with the legal requirements.

For questions regarding these transparency notices, the notification procedure or moderation decisions Please contact:

Scriptfabrik B.V.
Pastoor Jacobsweg 27
6226 VV Maastricht
Netherlands

E-mail: welcome@trustfair.de
Website: https://www.trustfair.de