Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Social media platforms make millions of moderation decisions every day – they delete content, restrict accounts or leave reported posts online. User Rights, an independent dispute resolution body certified under the Digital Services Act (DSA), helps affected individuals and organisations to have such decisions reviewed. Independently, transparently and free of charge.

The following FAQ provide answers to common questions about the procedure, requirements and process for filing a complaint.

Before you submit a complaint

Account restrictions

Deactivation of a social-media account
Temporary or permanent restriction of account functions

Content removal or alteration

Removal of social-media content (posts, comments, links, pages, groups)
Removal from group or page recommendations
Removal of external links
Removal of content from recommendations or feeds
Obscuring, blurring, or otherwise restricting visibility of content
Labelling or flagging of content

Visibility and reach limits

Limitation of the reach of content, pages or groups
Restriction of visibility (e.g., during live broadcasts)
Restriction of comment visibility
Limitation of content recommendations
Restriction on recommending an account to non-followers

Monetisation and advertising restrictions

Exclusion from monetisation features
Temporary or permanent restriction of monetisation
Restriction on the ability to create ads

Time-bound posting limits

Temporary restriction (1-30 days) on content creation
Temporary restriction on posting links
Restriction of certain features during a violation review
Restriction of live features

Account compromise due to hacking If someone hacks your account, it’s a security issue, not a moderation issue. User Rights can only help you with moderation issues on social-media platforms.
Lost password If you forget your password, it’s a login problem, not a moderation issue.
Restriction on direct messages
Questionable content via direct message e.g., offensive comments or inappropriate images.
Restriction based on automated behaviour e.g., spamming.
Notification older than six months We cannot process your complaint if you received the notification from the platform more than six months ago.
Not located or without an address in the EU We can only process complaints from users who are located in, or have a registered address within, the European Union.
Platform’s rules or national laws not (yet) covered You can find a current overview of the community standards and legal provisions that User Rights can review here.
Platform not (yet) covered We currently review cases involving Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Pinterest. If your case concerns another platform (e.g., YouTube), it’s currently out of scope.
Language not (yet) covered The restricted or reported content must be in English, German, French, or Italian.

A screenshot of the platform’s notification It must clearly show the measure taken (e.g., content removed, account suspended), the date, and the reason given. Please provide only one content-moderation notification per complaint.
If the complaint concerns content or an account you reported, please include a screenshot of the specific content or account.
If you claim that an account is impersonating you, please provide a document that allows us to verify your identity.

These documents, together with your explanation and contextual information, serve as the evidence our legal reviewers will consider (alongside the platform’s submission) to issue a non-binding decision.

User Rights does not charge any fees to individuals or organisations who bring a dispute.

Our dispute-settlement procedure is free of charge for users and organisations. The costs are covered by the social-media or online platform involved in the dispute.

We apply a graduated fee structure internally, based on the complexity of the case. These fees are paid by the social media platform – not by you.

We can only review restricted or reported content if it is in English, German, French, or Italian.

At present, we cover Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, and LinkedIn.

A platform’s rules include the policies defined by each social-media platform, such as community guidelines or standards, recommendation guidelines (e.g. TikTok’s For You Feed Eligibility Standards), advertising policies, and branded content policies.

To see which rule you may have potentially infringed, check the platform’s notification under sections such as “Why this happened” or “Violation reasons”.

Platform rules not covered by User Rights:

User Rights cannot review complaints related to the following categories:

"Harm Against Animals" (Instagram/Facebook) or “Animal Abuse” (TikTok)
“Cybersecurity” (Instagram/Facebook) or “Platform Security” (TikTok)
“Intellectual Property and other Commercial Rights Infringements” (Instagram/Facebook) or “Unoriginal Content and Intellectual Property Rights” (TikTok)
“Child Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Nudity” (Instagram/Facebook) or “Youth Sexual and Physical Abuse” (TikTok). For such cases, you can file a complaint with organisations such as FSM.
"Inauthentic Behavior" (Instagram/Facebook)

Please note that even if, in your opinion, you did not infringe these rules, we are still unable to process your complaint.

If a social-media platform refers only to a general rule without specifying the topic (e.g. “This post goes against our Community Standards”), you can still submit your complaint. User Rights will then follow up with the platform.

Our certification allows us to review and handle cases under the following legal frameworks:

German Criminal Code (Strafgesetzbuch, StGB) - Sections §§ 86, 86a, 89a, 91, 100a, 111, 126, 129, 129a, 129b, 130, 131, 134, 140, 145d, 166, 185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 201a, 241
European Union law
Italian Criminal Code (Codice Penale)

Yes.

If you are a lawyer, you may submit a case on behalf of your client, but you must provide a power of attorney.
Article 86 of the Digital Services Act (DSA) grants civil society organisations the right to file complaints on behalf of users against online platforms that violate the regulation. Accordingly, you may represent users and submit complaint on their behalf if you are a user organisation recognised under the DSA.

No.

If the social-media platform has taken multiple measures against you, you must submit a separate complaint for each measure individually.

Example: The platform removed a comment you posted yesterday and restricted the reach of a video you posted today. In this case, you should file one complaint against the removal of your comment and another complaint against the restriction of your video’s reach.

There is no limit to the number of cases you can submit. As long as you provide the required documents for each case and refrain from abusive or repetitive behaviour, you are free to file as many cases as you need.

After you submit a complaint

You will receive email updates at each step of the process.

Our team carefully reviews all submitted documents. If your case falls outside our certification scope, we will inform you by email and close your case. If any information is missing, we will contact you by email so that you can provide the required information.
The platform has 7 days to submit additional information or to reverse its content moderation decision. This period may be extended to 21 days. If the platform does not respond within the given timeframe, User Rights will continue the review based on the information you provided and may rule in your favour.
Our legal experts issue a non-binding decision within 90 days of your case submission. In particularly complex cases, this period may be extended to 180 days. The decision will be sent to both you and the platform, which then decides whether to implement it.

It depends on why the social-media platform took action against you, or why you reported content.

If the platform took action against you for allegedly violating its community standards, User Rights will verify whether you actually did. If the platform’s decision raises fundamental rights concerns, User Rights will also examine whether the platform’s action respects those rights.
If the platform took action against you for allegedly violating the law, User Rights will determine whether a legal violation actually occurred.
If you reported content for violating community standards, User Rights will check whether it truly does.
If you reported content because you believe it breaks the law, User Rights will assess whether the content is indeed illegal.

Please note that User Rights is not authorised to review all community standards of social-media platforms or all legal provisions. You can find an overview of the community standards and legal provisions that User Rights can review here.

Your case is still being processed. The review may take some time, depending on its complexity and the platform’s response. Our legal experts usually issue a non-binding decision within 90 to 180 days after your case have been submitted. If you haven’t received an update yet, it simply means your case is still under review.

You don’t need to take any action or contact us in the meantime. Tip: Check your spam or junk folder to ensure you don't miss any of our emails.

In some cases, we need to exchange additional information with the platform. These exchanges may take longer than excepted, but they are essential to ensure that our legal experts have all the necessary facts before issuing a decision.
You don’t need to take any action or contact us in the meantime.

We will send the decision to the platform. It is then up to the platform to restore or remove the content or account concerned. Although our decisions are non-binding, platforms are expected to act in good faith and comply with them.

If you have incurred any reasonable expenses, such as attorney’s fees or other related costs, the platform is also required to reimburse these once the dispute has been decided in your favour.

We will send the decision to the platform. In this case, the platform is not required to take any further action, and the original decision will remain in effect.

Even if the outcome is not in your favour, you will not have to pay any fees or costs related to the dispute settlement.

Maybe.

Even if our decision is in your favour, we cannot guarantee that the platform will restore your content or account - the final decision rests with the platform.

What you can be sure of is that our team of reviewers and legal experts carefully consider both your arguments and those of the platform before issuing a fair and independent decision.

Maybe.

Even if our decision supports removal, we cannot guarantee that the platform will take the content or account down - the final decision rests with the platform.

What you can be sure of is that our team of reviewers and legal experts carefully assesses both your arguments and those of the platform before issuing a fair and independent decision.

You can take your case to a national court.
You may also file a complaint with your national Digital Services Coordinator (DSC). For platforms headquartered in Ireland (including Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and TikTok) you can submit a complaint to Coimisiún na Meán, Ireland’s DSC.
In addition, you may seek independent legal advice to explore further options.

You can submit a new complaint on user-rights.org. To help our legal experts identify any patterns and assess your case more effectively:

Upload the new notification from the platform
Attach any relevant materials from your previous complaint
Briefly explain why you believe this new case is similar to the earlier one

Reviewed by our legal experts.

Last updated: November 2025.