The Council voices its concern about neglected oversight of paid advertising content appearing on social media platforms in the context of repeated cases of unlawful use of public figures’ image in marketing materials to extort money from investors. 

The lack of regulation of the technology corporations’ obligations, especially the lack of implementation of solutions enabling the full application of the provisions of the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), minimizes the liability of social platforms for illegal activities carried out on a massive scale, including fraud, data theft, hate speech or disinformation campaigns aimed at deepening divisions and undermining public trust in institutions and public figures. It also has direct, negative consequences for many of their users. It should be borne in mind that the victims of this practice are not only businessmen, athletes, celebrities or politicians whose image has been illegally used. Severe losses are suffered primarily by misguided investors who, guided by the authority of a recognizable person – as well as trust in the medium from which they obtained such information – often lose their entire life savings. Similar problems are also experienced by social organizations, enterprises, schools, cultural institutions and a number of other entities.

Recalling its proposals included in the systemic recommendations of 31 December 2025 and the call for the implementation of the DSA of 15 January 2026, the Consultative Council for Resilience to International Disinformation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs proposes the creation of a specialised support mechanism for individuals and institutions affected by activities carried out or strengthened through social platforms. 

The Council also draws attention to the benefits for users of social media platforms stemming from the notice-and-action mechanism - a tool for reporting illegal content, including online shopping fraud and financial fraud - introduced by the Digital Services Act. According to the DSA, all online platforms in the EU must provide such a mechanism for all their users. The mechanism should be designed to be simple and not to require technical or legal knowledge to use it.

Thanks to this mechanism:

• The platform must inform the complainant about the outcome of the complaint;
• Complaints must be carefully and impartially analysed and decisions must be taken without undue delay;
• If the author of the complaint disagrees with the decision of the platform, they may appeal it free of charge in accordance with the platform's complaints procedures or through an independent dispute resolution body;
• If the complaint concerns an obvious scam and is detailed enough, the platform must quickly remove or block the indicated scam, otherwise it may be legally liable and sued for damages. 

Bearing in mind that Poles should enjoy the full scope of benefits resulting from the implementation of the Digital Services Act, the Resilience Council reiterates its call for the adoption of national legal regulations enabling its application – in particular, for the President of the Republic of Poland to sign the amendment to the Act on digital services, adopted by the Sejm.

The Council supports all actions and initiatives aimed at ensuring the safety of all users of social media and participants of public debates, business activities and social interactions undertaken through such platforms. The responsibility for ensuring this security lies with all of us, but especially with the technology corporations that have a real influence on the way their platforms operate.