Tuesday 17.3.2025, 9:00 – 13:00
The GESIS Methods Hub Social Media Datasprint: Interactive Workshop

Johannes Kiesel, Christina Viehmann, Felix Münch, Arnim Bleier GESIS – Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences

Participation is limited to 20 persons. Please apply for participation on the following website: https://methodshub.gesis.org/community/smad26-datasprint/

Wednesday, 18.3.2025, 15:30 – 17:30
Workshop: How to Prepare a DSC Reasoned Request Under the Digital Services Act (DSA) to Access Non-Public Data from Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs)

• Olivier Y. Rouquette (GESIS – Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences)
• Yannik Peters (GESIS – Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences)
• Paulo Almeida (Laboratory of Instrumentation and Experimental Particle Physics, Portugal)
• Joana Gonçalves de Sá (Laboratory of Instrumentation and Experimental Particle Physics, Portugal)

Participation is limited to 25 persons, registration is required (via the conference registration form)

The DSA establishes a new model for researcher access to online-platform data. Article 40 and its Delegated Act define strong safeguards for security, confidentiality, and personal-data protection, including the use of Secure Processing Environments (SPEs). These provisions represent a shift toward a regulated, auditable, and privacy-compliant framework for platform research.

As the data-access procedure has recently opened, researchers and institutions are beginning to prepare their first submissions to national Data Services Coordinators (DSCs). While practical experience is still limited, expectations are taking shape and early institutional responses are underway. This workshop will therefore serve as an early forum for exchange, helping participants to anticipate requirements, interpret obligations, and align institutional practices before the first evaluations and approvals take place.

The workshop aims to:

• Demystify the procedural and technical requirements for DSA data access;
• Translate legislative obligations into actionable steps for researchers and infrastructures;
• Support capacity-building within institutions likely to engage with DSCs;
• Foster shared understanding and coordination among researchers and infrastructures;
• Prepare the ground for shared learning as the first experiences emerge.

The workshop will be conducted in English.

This format combines hands-on work, peer learning, and scenario-based reasoning, offering participants both conceptual understanding and early orientation within a rapidly developing regulatory process.

The workshop targets:

• Researchers preparing to request access to VLOP/VLOSE data under the DSA;
• Representatives of research infrastructures, libraries, and data archives developing support mechanisms;
• Policymakers, DSCs, and institutional data-protection officers interested in operationalising Article 40.

This interactive workshop will guide participants through the practical steps of preparing a reasoned request under the Digital Services Act (DSA) to access non-public data from Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) and Very Large Online Search Engines (VLOSEs).

The session will combine short expert presentations with guided group exercises and structured discussion. Participants will work through an example DSA data-access request, identifying the necessary legal, ethical, and technical components while reflecting on how to align research practices and infrastructures with the new regulatory framework.

Programme

1. Introduction (20 min) – Overview of Article 40 DSA and the Delegated Act, focusing on requirements for reasoned requests, data-protection safeguards, and Secure Processing Environments (SPEs).

2. Context and First Steps (20 min) – Discussion of the current state of implementation following the recent opening of the DSA data-access procedure, outlining what the process entails and how institutions can prepare for upcoming evaluations.

3. Group Work (45 min) – Participants collaboratively draft key components of a mock reasoned request, focusing on:

• defining the public interest and research purpose;
• identifying relevant data and justifying proportionality;
• specifying confidentiality, data-protection, and security safeguards;
• outlining feasible access modalities.

4. Collective Reflection (25 min) – Open exchange on expectations, institutional readiness, and opportunities to develop shared approaches, templates, or support mechanisms as practical experience accumulates.

5. Closing (10 min) – Summary of takeaways and identification of next steps for coordination among researchers, infrastructures, and Data Services Coordinators (DSCs).