Clickbait Title: “Revolutionary Measures for Online Political Ads: What EU Officials are Doing to Protect the Democratic Process!”

Protection of Democracy: How the European Union Is Enhancing Transparency for Elections

As the European Union prepares for elections next year, it is taking measures to protect the democratic process, particularly when it comes to the realm of online political advertising. On Tuesday, EU officials unveiled new regulations to increase transparency and accountability in such advertisements, as well as introducing rules to protect against foreign interference and personal data abuse. Here are the five measures being implemented:

1. Strengthening Transparency
To improve transparency and trust, the EU will make it easier to identify who is responsible for an ad. Every political ad will be publicly labelled and accompanied by specific information such as the payer, where the investment came from, and the amount paid. All online political advertisements will be recorded in a digital repository that can be accessed by citizens, authorities, and journalists.

2. Limiting Foreign Interference
The EU has also set new restrictions for the three months prior to any election or referendum, effectively barring third-country entities from sponsoring political ads.

3. Tightening the Rules on Ad Targeting
Political ads will not be allowed to use any personal data that has not been specifically provided by the subject or profile on the basis of sensitive characteristics like ethnicity, religion, and sexual orientation. Similarly, they will be barred from using minors’ data.

4. Upholding Freedom of Expression
To protect freedom of speech, the rules applying to online political ads will not affect expressing personal views or political opinions.

5. Strict Sanctions
Violators of the new regulations could face sanctions of up to 6% of their annual income or turnover, in line with the EU’s Digital Services Act.

The European Council and Parliament now need to formally adopt the applicable rules which will take effect in eighteen months. Commissioner Věra Jourová argued that elections should be fair competitions without “opaque techniques or interference” and that “people must know why they are seeing an ad, who paid for it, how much, and what targeting criteria were used”.