Article 37 - Crisis protocols

Article 36 - Codes of conduct for online advertising
Article 38 - Competent authorities and Digital Services Coordinators
  1. The Board may recommend the Commission to initiate the drawing up, in accordance with paragraphs 2, 3 and 4, of crisis protocols for addressing crisis situations strictly limited to extraordinary circumstances affecting public security or public health.
  2. The Commission shall encourage and facilitate very large online platforms and, where appropriate, other online platforms, with the involvement of the Commission, to participate in the drawing up, testing and application of those crisis protocols, which include one or more of the following measures:
    1. displaying prominent information on the crisis situation provided by Member States’ authorities or at Union level;
    2. ensuring that the point of contact referred to in Article 10 is responsible for crisis management;
    3. where applicable, adapt the resources dedicated to compliance with the obligations set out in Articles 14, 17, 19, 20 and 27 to the needs created by the crisis situation.
  3. The Commission may involve, as appropriate, Member States’ authorities and Union bodies, offices and agencies in drawing up, testing and supervising the application of the crisis protocols. The Commission may, where necessary and appropriate, also involve civil society organisations or other relevant organisations in drawing up the crisis protocols.
  4. The Commission shall aim to ensure that the crisis protocols set out clearly all of the following:
    1. the specific parameters to determine what constitutes the specific extraordinary circumstance the crisis protocol seeks to address and the objectives it pursues;
    2. the role of each participant and the measures they are to put in place in preparation and once the crisis protocol has been activated;
    3. a clear procedure for determining when the crisis protocol is to be activated;
    4. a clear procedure for determining the period during which the measures to be taken once the crisis protocol has been activated are to be taken, which is strictly limited to what is necessary for addressing the specific extraordinary circumstances concerned;
    5. safeguards to address any negative effects on the exercise of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Charter, in particular the freedom of expression and information and the right to non-discrimination;
    6. a process to publicly report on any measures taken, their duration and their outcomes, upon the termination of the crisis situation.
  5. If the Commission considers that a crisis protocol fails to effectively address the crisis situation, or to safeguard the exercise of fundamental rights as referred to in point (e) of paragraph 4, it may request the participants to revise the crisis protocol, including by taking additional measures.