Chapter 3 of 7 · Online and social media · Notice builder
Notice and complaint builder
Checked 9 October 2026, Defamation Act 2009 as amended.
Three free routes, each with a form of words the other side has to act on: a notice to the platform hosting the content, a complaint to a newspaper editor, or a complaint to a broadcaster. Answer in your own words and copy the text out. It does not build a solicitor's letter.
What are you sending?
- Describe where the content is and why it is wrong; do not reproduce the words themselves in anything public, and do not post about the notice.
- Say nothing about the author beyond what the notice needs. Commentary about them can become a second dispute.
- Keep a dated copy of what you send and every reply. The evidence kit lists what else to capture today.
Your details and answers
Your text
To: [platform or host] (notice under Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065, the Digital Services Act) From: [your full name] <[your email]> Date: [today's date] I am giving notice of content on your service that I believe is illegal: it is defamatory of me under the law of Ireland (Defamation Act 2009, as amended). Exact location of the content: [the full URL of the post, comment, review or page] [where on the page: the account name, the date and time it was posted, the comment thread] Why I believe it is illegal: [In your own words: what the content says about you, what is false, and why it damages your reputation in the eyes of reasonable people. Do not quote the words themselves if this notice could be published.] What I ask: Please remove or disable access to this content without undue delay, tell me what you have decided and why, and tell me how to appeal if you decide not to act, as Articles 16 and 17 require. Statement of good faith: I confirm that I believe in good faith that the information and allegations in this notice are accurate and complete. [your full name] (Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065), Article 16. Coimisiún na Meán is Ireland's Digital Services Coordinator.)
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The builder is free, generic and in your own words; it is not a letter before action and nothing here is drafted for reward (Solicitors Act 1954, s.58). Whether the content is unlawful is for the platform, the Ombudsman, the regulator or a court to decide.