Background
This section covers the rules and guidelines applicable to websites, which need functionalities or services not included in the list of corporate solutions. A contractor – called third-party here - provides these functionalities or services embedded in European Commission websites.
What third-party tools and services are
- tools installed on Commission infrastructure, but not developed in-house (e.g. charts, infographics, etc.)
- commercial services that are beyond the control of the Commission (e.g. YouTube videos, social media feeds, etc.)
Risks
Using third-party tools and services entails the following risks
- privacy and data protection: third party products often use permanent cookies and other methods of data collection without an appropriate consent mechanism
- business continuity: the European Commission has no influence over maintenance
- legal uncertainty: terms of use can be changed without notice
- dependency: Commission webmasters have no control over these tools
- limited accuracy assurance: providers can change data collection without notice, and use differing methods to collect data
- security: undesired redirections or malware
- endorsement: their use can be considered as implicit endorsement by the European institutions, which is a breach of competition rules
Rules
DGs and executive agencies must use the corporate solutions as default tools and services. Contact COMM Europa Management (EU Login required), whose DG COMM Europa Team will help you assess the site’s needs, choose amongst existing corporate solutions or, as a last resort, provide advice regarding a potential third party.
Procedure
Start with checking the list of corporate solutions and proceed as described in the page of the solution you have chosen.
If there is no corporate solution available for what you need, please send an in-depth needs assessment and justification for a third-party solution to COMM Europa Management (EU Login required) who will advise on the best tool or service to use.
Third party products/services which require IT investment
When the use of a new IT tool/service/platform requires IT investment, you must follow the IT Investment assessment process (EU Login required).
Contact your DG’s IT Portfolio Manager (PM) (EU Login required) for more information.
Third party products/services which cannot be embedded
Please read the third-party platforms page and follow the procedure described when
- the service provided by a third party cannot be embedded on a europa.eu site, and
- requires the use of a separate, publicly accessible instance hosted by the contractor.
Data protection
You must comply with the Commission data protection Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 when you process personal data as part of any task relating to the development of the European Commission's web presence.
See our page about data protection for more information.
Accessibility
Web accessibility is about ensuring that everyone, including people with disabilities, such as visual, hearing, motor or cognitive impairments, is able to use and interact with websites and applications.
To achieve this, the European Commission is making a particular effort to make its corporate solutions compliant with the Web Accessibility Directive (Directive (EU) 2016/2102) while there is no guaranty that a third-party solution would be accessible. For more information, please read our section about accessibility.
Contact and support
Need further assistance on this topic? Please contact the team in charge of Europa Domain Management (EU Login required).