Internet & Online Safety · Italy
Online safety in Italy: the EU Digital Services Act (2026)
Italy shaded by its internet & online safety status
Online safety rules in Italy: comprehensive law, under EU Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065), applied nationally with AGCOM (Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni) as Italy's Digital Services Coordinator under Decree-Law No. 123/2023 (converted by Law No. 159/2023, the 'Caivano Decree'); supplemented by AGCOM's age-verification Resolution No. 96/25/CONS (2025)..
Italy regulates online content and platforms primarily through the directly-applicable EU Digital Services Act, in force since 17 February 2024, with AGCOM designated as the national Digital Services Coordinator responsible for supervision, complaints, trusted-flagger recognition and sanctions. National law adds a binding age-verification regime for adult content and youth-protection measures via the Caivano Decree. There is no general state censorship of the internet; the regime is rights-based and EU-harmonised.
The Digital Services Act in Italy
In Italy, online platforms and intermediaries are governed by the EU Digital Services Act (DSA), a directly-applicable regulation covering illegal content, transparency and user protection.
- Framework
- the EU Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065)
- Approach
- notice-and-action on illegal content, transparency reporting, clear terms, and protection of minors
- Applies to
- online intermediaries, hosting services and platforms offering services to users in Italy, wherever established
- Very large platforms
- platforms and search engines with 45M+ EU users face extra systemic-risk audits, overseen by the European Commission
- Maximum fine
- up to 6% of global annual turnover
- Oversight
- the national Digital Services Coordinator, plus the European Commission for very large platforms
The DSA is an EU regulation applied directly in Italy; the national Digital Services Coordinator handles day-to-day supervision.
The Digital Services Act in Italy: FAQ
Yes. As an EU member, Italy is covered by the EU Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065), which applies directly.
Notice-and-action mechanisms for illegal content, transparency reporting, clear terms of service, and measures to protect minors.
The national Digital Services Coordinator, with the European Commission supervising very large online platforms and search engines.
Up to 6% of a provider's global annual turnover for serious breaches.
Key points
The Digital Services Act applies directly in Italy and sets the core rules on illegal-content notice-and-action, conditional platform liability (hosting/intermediary safe harbours from the e-Commerce framework), transparency, and obligations for Very Large Online Platforms supervised by the European Commission.
AGCOM was designated Italy's Digital Services Coordinator under Article 15 of Decree-Law No. 123 of 15 September 2023 (converted by Law No. 159 of 13 November 2023), pursuant to Article 49 of the DSA, with the regime operative from 17 February 2024.
AGCOM is the national point of reference for DSA supervision: handling complaints against intermediaries, certifying out-of-court dispute bodies, recognising trusted flaggers, and imposing sanctions, coordinating with the competition authority (AGCM) and the data-protection authority (Garante). It published its first annual DSC report (covering 2024) in July 2025.
Implementing Article 13-bis of the Caivano Decree, AGCOM adopted Resolution No. 96/25/CONS (8 April 2025) requiring certified third-party age verification before access to pornographic content, using a privacy-preserving 'double anonymity' model (identification then per-session authentication).
On 31 October 2025 AGCOM published a list of 48 adult platforms subject to the obligation, with measures taking effect 12 November 2025; non-compliance carries fines up to EUR 250,000 and AGCOM can order blocking of non-compliant sites until compliance is restored.
Intermediary liability follows the EU model: hosting providers are not liable for user content absent actual knowledge, and must act expeditiously on valid notices; AGCOM also retains pre-existing powers over copyright enforcement and audiovisual/video-sharing platform content online.
Timeline - major decisions & events
Italy's communications regulator imposed a €14,247,698 fine on Cloudflare for failing to comply with content-blocking orders issued under the Piracy Shield system, signaling enforcement reaching beyond access ISPs to CDN/DNS providers.
Advanced Television ↗Following AGCOM's 31 October 2025 list of 48 platforms, adult-content sites must verify users are 18+ using a 'double-anonymity' system, regardless of where the provider is established; non-compliance risks fines up to €250,000 and blocking.
EPRA ↗AGCOM broadened the anti-piracy blocking regime beyond live sport to cover films, TV series premieres and music, making Piracy Shield Italy's general real-time copyright-blocking tool.
ComplianceHub ↗Implementing the Caivano Decree, AGCOM approved binding rules requiring adult-content providers to deploy certified age-assurance systems based on identification plus per-session authentication.
Council of Europe (IRIS/EAO) ↗Italy's data protection authority closed its ChatGPT probe, fining OpenAI €15 million for processing training data without a legal basis, transparency failures, an unreported breach and lack of age verification, and ordered a six-month public information campaign.
Garante per la protezione dei dati personali ↗As Italy's Digital Services Coordinator, AGCOM adopted procedural rules for certifying out-of-court dispute settlement bodies and granting 'trusted flagger' status under Articles 21-22 of the EU Digital Services Act.
European Commission ↗The DSA took full effect across the EU with AGCOM acting as Italy's Digital Services Coordinator, overseeing illegal-content removal, complaint mechanisms and platform accountability for services operating in Italy.
Bird & Bird (DSA Tracker) ↗AGCOM launched the automated Piracy Shield platform enabling rights-holder reports to trigger blocking of FQDNs and IP addresses within 30 minutes, initially targeting illegal live sports streaming.
AGCOM ↗Converted into Law 159/2023, the decree banned minors' access to pornographic content, mandated age verification, and designated AGCOM as Italy's Digital Services Coordinator under the DSA.
Digital Policy Alert ↗Parliament passed the law providing the legal basis for real-time blocking of pirated live broadcasts, empowering AGCOM to order rapid takedowns and creating the framework later operationalised as Piracy Shield.
CCIA ↗The Italian data protection authority issued an emergency order halting OpenAI's processing of Italian users' data over lack of legal basis, transparency and age controls, the first such action against a generative-AI service in the EU; access was restored on 28 April 2023.
Garante per la protezione dei dati personali ↗Italy's landmark cyberbullying law lets minors aged 14+ (or their parents) demand removal/blocking of harmful online content within 48 hours, with recourse to the Garante, and mandates school prevention programs.
Council of Europe ↗AGCOM gained administrative power to order ISPs to remove or block access to copyright-infringing sites via a notice-and-takedown procedure; the regulation entered into force on 1 April 2014.
WIPO Lex ↗Italy's foundational internet-intermediary law transposed Directive 2000/31/EC, establishing the liability regime and safe harbours for mere-conduit, caching and hosting providers that still underpins content-moderation obligations.
WIPO Lex ↗Italy - other topics
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