This year marks the 18th edition of the Safer Internet Day, an international event held to promote a safer and more responsible use of online technology.

eBay connects millions of buyers and sellers around the world around items they love. By enabling European SMEs to build their businesses using its innovation and digital technologies, eBay is committed to providing a safe, secure and convenient place for e-commerce and the participation of SMEs in global trade.

To support this commitment, we have put in place rules and policies that govern our expectations of buyers and sellers, the actions we take to keep users safe, and how we protect users if something goes wrong. These policies are complemented by robust notice-and action systems, content moderation procedures, and collaboration programs with owners of intellectual property rights like VeRO.

Furthermore, we have committed to additional voluntary agreements initiated by the European Commission, such as the EU Product Safety Pledge - eBay being one of the founding signatories - or the Memorandum of Understanding on the sale of counterfeit goods on the internet. Through these agreements, we cooperate closely with public and private partners to keep the internet safer for users.

Recently we have launched eBay's Regulatory Portal.  The Portal is intended to improve cooperation with regulators and market surveillance authorities around the world by introducing a number of new features improving the efficiency of our systems to protect consumers, such as the automatic removal of reported listings of dangerous products and direct communication channels with sellers and buyers. Through the Portal authorities can warn buyers directly and immediately in case of product call-backs or other risks.

We also welcome the European Union's intention to adopt the Digital Services Act, which seeks to ensure the online safety of EU citizens and SMEs. We believe that such initiatives should be carefully balanced in order to ensure that EU citizens and SMEs can reap the full potential of the digital economy.