Subject: Access to Documents under Regulation 1049/2001 – Raw Responses and Methodology for 2020 DSA Public Consultation (Initiative 12416)
Dear European Commission (DG CONNECT),Pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 regarding public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents (the "Regulation"), I hereby request access to the following documents, which are held by the Commission and relate to the public consultation on the Digital Services Act (DSA) conducted from 2 June to 8 September 2020 (Initiative ID: 12416):
:All individual raw responses to the 2020 DSA public consultation (approximately 3,000 submissions), including open-text fields, anonymized where necessary to protect personal data under Article 4(1)(b) of the Regulation. This excludes any personally identifiable information but includes metadata such as respondent type (e.g., citizen, NGO, business), affiliation, and submission date.
.
Internal methodology documents used to analyze and summarize the responses, including any weighting formulas, aggregation methods, or calculations leading to the reported "70%+ support for stronger obligations on illegal content and online safety" figure (as cited in the Synopsis Report, SWD(2020) 312 final).
.
All correspondence (emails, meeting minutes, notes, or reports) between DG CONNECT and external stakeholders (e.g., NGOs such as EDRi, BEUC, Access Now; or businesses like Google/Meta) regarding the promotion, outreach, or coordination of responses to the consultation (period: January–December 2020)
.
Grant agreements or funding records awarded to organizations involved in promoting or mobilizing responses to the consultation (e.g., EDRi, BEUC, Access Now; period: 2019–2021), including amounts, purposes, and performance indicators related to the consultation
These documents are necessary to assess the transparency and representativeness of the consultation process, as referenced in the Synopsis Report's admission that responses "reflect the views of those with a particular interest in the topic" (p. 8). They do not contain personal data beyond what is already redacted in public summaries and fall under the public interest in understanding EU legislative processes (Article 2(3) of the Regulation).
.I request that access be granted free of charge in line with Article 6(4) of the Regulation, preferably in electronic format (e.g., CSV/Excel for responses, PDF for correspondence). If any part is withheld, please provide a detailed statement of reasons per Article 7(1), including partial access options.
.I look forward to your reply within 15 working days as per Article 7(1).Yours faithfully,
T**** C******
Country of Residence, Ireland
Reasons
Subject: Access to Documents under Regulation 1049/2001 – Raw Responses and Methodology for 2020 DSA Public Consultation (Initiative 12416)
Dear European Commission (DG CONNECT),
Pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, I request:
1. All ~3,000 raw responses to the 2020 DSA consultation (Initiative 12416), anonymized (metadata + open text only).
2. Internal methodology for the “70%+ support” figure.
3. Correspondence (Jan–Dec 2020) with EDRi, BEUC, Access Now on consultation promotion.
4. Grant agreements (2019–2021) with these NGOs.
Free access per Art. 6(4). Electronic format. 15 working days.
Your message has been received by the Transparency Unit of the
Secretariat-General of the European Commission.
Requests for public access to documents are treated on the basis of
[1]Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to
European Parliament, Council and Commission documents.
The Secretariat-General will reply to your request within 15 working days
upon registration of your request and will duly inform you of the
registration of the request (or of any additional information to be
provided in view of its registration and/or treatment).
L’unité «Transparence» du secrétariat général de la Commission européenne
a bien reçu votre message.
Les demandes d’accès du public aux documents sont traitées sur la base du
[2]règlement (CE) n° 1049/2001 du 30 mai 2001 relatif à l’accès du public
aux documents du Parlement européen, du Conseil et de la Commission.
Le secrétariat général répondra à votre demande dans un délai de 15 jours
ouvrables à compter de la date d’enregistrement de votre demande, et vous
informera de cet enregistrement (ou vous indiquera toute information
supplémentaire à fournir en vue de l'enregistrement et/ou du traitement de
votre demande).
Ihre Nachricht ist beim Referat „Transparenz“ des Generalsekretariats der
Europäischen Kommission eingegangen.
Anträge auf Zugang zu Dokumenten werden auf der Grundlage der
[3]Verordnung (EG) Nr. 1049/2001 vom 30. Mai 2001 über den Zugang der
Öffentlichkeit zu Dokumenten des Europäischen Parlaments, des Rates und
der Kommission behandelt.
Das Generalsekretariat beantwortet Ihre Anfrage innerhalb von
15 Arbeitstagen nach deren Registrierung und wird Sie über die
Registrierung Ihres Antrags (oder die Notwendigkeit weiterer Informationen
im Hinblick auf dessen Registrierung und/oder Bearbeitung) unterrichten.
References
Visible links
1. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
2. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
3. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
Dear Sir or Madam,
We are writing to you concerning your request for access to documents sent
on 15/11/2025 and registered on 15/11/2025 under case number 2025/5964.
Since you have not indicated your postal address, we are not able to start
handling your request. The 15 working days to reply to your request will
start running only when you send us your postal address.
You can send your postal address by replying to this e-mail. If we do not
receive your reply we may close this case.
Please note that you can submit a request for access to Commission
documents via the portal [1]'Request a Commission document', which does
not require you to indicate your postal address.
Why do we need your personal postal address?
Since 1 April 2014, the submission of a postal address became a mandatory
feature when submitting an application for access to Commission documents
via an e-mail. We would like to explain why we need your postal address in
order to register and handle your application for access to documents when
submitted via e-mail:
• Firstly, to obtain legal certainty as regards the date you received
the European Commission reply to your application for public access to
documents. Article 297 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the
European Union (TFEU) states that 'decisions which specify to whom
they are addressed, shall be notified to those to whom they are
addressed and shall take effect upon such notification.' In line with
this provision, if the Commission does not grant full access to the
requested documents, it notifies the reply to the applicant via
registered mail with acknowledgement of receipt or via delivery
service. This requires an indication of a valid postal address by the
applicant;
• Secondly, to apply correctly the [2]Data Protection Regulation (EU)
2018/1725. Knowing whether the applicant is an EU resident (or not) is
necessary for deciding which conditions shall apply for the
transmissions of personal data to applicants for access to documents.
These conditions are not the same for recipients established in the
Union and for recipients in third countries. As the vast majority of
the documents requested contain personal data, the Commission cannot
ensure the correct application of the data protection rules in the
absence of a postal address;
• Thirdly, to apply correctly [3]Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001. Article
4(1)(b) of that Regulation refers to the protection of the privacy and
integrity of the individual and has to be applied in line with the
Data Protection Regulation;
• Fourthly, to protect the interest of other citizens and safeguard the
principle of good administration. The Commission has to treat all
citizens equally by ensuring that the legal framework for public
access to documents is respected. For example, it has to verify
whether Article 6(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 is being evaded
by introducing several requests under different identities. Indeed, in
its Ryanair judgment ([4]EU:T:2010:511), the General Court confirmed
that Article 6(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 cannot be evaded by
splitting an application into several, seemingly separate, parts. In
addition, the Commission has to make sure that the legal framework is
respected and the right of access to documents is not abused by making
requests under an invented identity.
The considerations above show that the request for and the consequent
processing of the applicant's postal address is not only appropriate, but
also strictly necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the
public interest within the meaning of Article 5(1)(a) of Data Protection
Regulation, namely providing a smooth and effective access to documents.
Yours faithfully,
Secretariat-General - Access to Documents
European Commission
References
Visible links
1. https://www.ec.europa.eu/transparency/do...
2. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
3. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
4. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
Dear Secretariat General of the European Commission,
My address as requested
1 Bayview Rise
Killiney
CO. Dublin
Ireland
Yours faithfully,
Trudy Carroll
Your message has been received by the Transparency Unit of the
Secretariat-General of the European Commission.
Requests for public access to documents are treated on the basis of
[1]Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to
European Parliament, Council and Commission documents.
The Secretariat-General will reply to your request within 15 working days
upon registration of your request and will duly inform you of the
registration of the request (or of any additional information to be
provided in view of its registration and/or treatment).
L’unité «Transparence» du secrétariat général de la Commission européenne
a bien reçu votre message.
Les demandes d’accès du public aux documents sont traitées sur la base du
[2]règlement (CE) n° 1049/2001 du 30 mai 2001 relatif à l’accès du public
aux documents du Parlement européen, du Conseil et de la Commission.
Le secrétariat général répondra à votre demande dans un délai de 15 jours
ouvrables à compter de la date d’enregistrement de votre demande, et vous
informera de cet enregistrement (ou vous indiquera toute information
supplémentaire à fournir en vue de l'enregistrement et/ou du traitement de
votre demande).
Ihre Nachricht ist beim Referat „Transparenz“ des Generalsekretariats der
Europäischen Kommission eingegangen.
Anträge auf Zugang zu Dokumenten werden auf der Grundlage der
[3]Verordnung (EG) Nr. 1049/2001 vom 30. Mai 2001 über den Zugang der
Öffentlichkeit zu Dokumenten des Europäischen Parlaments, des Rates und
der Kommission behandelt.
Das Generalsekretariat beantwortet Ihre Anfrage innerhalb von
15 Arbeitstagen nach deren Registrierung und wird Sie über die
Registrierung Ihres Antrags (oder die Notwendigkeit weiterer Informationen
im Hinblick auf dessen Registrierung und/oder Bearbeitung) unterrichten.
References
Visible links
1. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
2. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
3. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/...
Dear Sir or Madam,
We refer to your request for access to documents, registered under the
reference number 2025/5964.
Your application is currently being handled.
However, we will not be in a position to complete the handling of your
application within the time limit of 15 working days, which expires today.
An extended time limit is needed as different services need to be
consulted.
Therefore we have to extend the time limit with 15 working days in
accordance with Article 7(3) of Regulation (EC) 1049/2001 regarding public
access to documents. The new time limit expires on 8 January 2026.
We apologise for this delay and any inconvenience this may cause.
Yours faithfully,
DG CONNECT Access to Documents Team
Hello,
Please find attached a message concerning your request for access to
Commission documents registered under the above case number 2025/5964.
Please acknowledge the receipt of this message by return email.
Kind regards,
DG CONNECT Access to documents Team
Dear Secretariat General of the European Commission,
Please pass this on to the person who reviews confirmatory applications.
I am filing the following confirmatory application with regards to my access to documents request 'Subject: Access to Documents under Regulation 1049/2001 – Raw Responses and Methodology for 2020 DSA Public Consultation (Initiative 12416)'.
The attachments are only publicly available documents (Impact Assessment/synopsis). No raw responses, methodology details, correspondence, or grants were provided. Please confirm full refusal and reasons. I request internal review due to overriding public interest in DSA transparency (free speech impact on 450M people). Suggest anonymized partial release."Subject: Confirmatory application – EASE 2025/5964
Dear Secretariat-General of the European Commission,
I hereby submit this confirmatory application under Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 in response to the reply dated 23 December 2025 for case EASE 2025/5964.
The provided attachments (Reply EASE 2025 5964.pdf and Document 3.pdf) contain only publicly available documents (such as the DSA Impact Assessment and consultation summary reports). No access was granted to the requested anonymized raw responses, detailed internal methodology for analyzing the ~11,000 replies, correspondence with external stakeholders (e.g., NGOs like EDRi, BEUC, Access Now, or platforms like Google/Meta) regarding coordination of responses in 2020, or related grant/funding records (2019–2021).
This partial disclosure prevents independent verification of whether the 2020 DSA consultation reflected genuine broad public input or was influenced by coordinated campaigns/echo chambers, which is central to assessing the legitimacy of the DSA's content moderation rules affecting free expression for over 450 million people.
There is an overriding public interest in full transparency that justifies disclosure, outweighing any privacy or commercial concerns (which could be addressed via heavy anonymization/redaction of personal data). Aggregated summaries alone are insufficient for scrutiny.
I therefore request a review of the initial decision and full (or maximally anonymized) access to the withheld documents. If access is still refused, please provide detailed reasons under the specific exemptions invoked.
Thank you for your attention.
Best regards,
Saolta Advocacy
Trudy Carroll
1 Bayview Rise, Killiney, Co. Dublin, Ireland]
[email address]
A full history of my request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.asktheeu.org/request/subject...
Yours faithfully,
Trudy Carroll
Dear Sir or Madam,
We hereby acknowledge the receipt of your confirmatory request for case
2025/5964, sent on 14/01/2026 and registered on 15/01/2026.
We will handle your confirmatory request within 15 working days as of the
date of registration. The time-limit expires on 05/02/2026. We will let
you know if we need to extend this time limit for additional 15 working
days.
Yours faithfully,
Secretariat-General - Access to Documents
European Commission