Press Release 16/2022

6 September 2022

The AdC has a new whistleblower tool through which any person or company may report an anti-competitive practice detected during their professional activity.

The new tool guarantees the protection of the identity of the whistleblower and offers the possibility to opt for completely anonymous and encrypted communication with the AdC’s investigation team

The tool complies with the rules set out in Law No. 93/2021 which transposes the EU Whistleblowing Directive (Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council. This law ensures that whistleblowers are protected effectively against retaliation, among other guarantees.

 

Cooperation with the AdC

The cooperation of citizens with the AdC is decisive for the detection of practices or behaviors that seriously harm competition and, as a result, businesses, and consumers.

The AdC receives around 500 complaints per year, to which it gives priority according to the seriousness of the anticompetitive practice and the robustness of the evidence provided. Whistleblowers who use the new tool, even if remaining anonymous, may receive information from the AdC regarding the complaint reported. However, depending on the investigation that it may trigger, it is not always possible to provide a quick reply to the whistleblower with details of the case as this could jeopardize the investigation.

The new whistleblower tool does not replace the other existing channels such as the leniency program.

Anonymous and confidential

The new whistleblower tool, available on the AdC's website, allows communications to be maintained without the AdC itself knowing the identity of the whistleblower, since it will never see their username or e-mail address.

Once the whistleblower has accessed the channel and submitted the information to report, he will obtain a new ID and avatar randomly generated for each report he creates.

The IP address of the whistleblower cannot be traced, as it is deleted and is never stored on the AdC’s servers.

The platform allows you to send messages and files securely by removing all identifying metadata from the shared files.

How does it work?

Anyone who wants to report an anti-competitive practice that they are aware of related to their professional activity can access the whistleblower tool and create their inbox.

You do not have to share any personal information and each report is submitted under a different pseudonym so that you can never be identified (unless you choose to be).

Once your inbox is created, you can complete your report, upload files, save as a draft to complete later and submit whenever you like. Keep in mind that a report with more reliable information is more likely to trigger an investigation than a vague and unsubstantiated report.

Once your report is submitted, you can start chatting anonymously with the AdC. You can also optionally download a mobile application to send messages and receive notifications.

Dedicated phone line

You can also use a dedicated phone line, at no cost to the user and without human interaction to maintain anonymity, through +351 308 803 593.

For more information on the AdC's investigative activity, the channels to report anti-competitive and the leniency program, visit the AdC's website at www.concorrencia.pt.