Whistleblowing-System of the Austrian Federal Competition Authority

It is possible to anonymously send information about violations of cartel law to the Austrian Federal Competition Authority (AFCA). Antitrust violations happen generally in secret and whistleblowers are concerned about consequences if they turn to the AFCA. For this reason, the AFCA has introduced this Whistleblowing-System to protect informants.

This Link will take you directly to the Whistleblowing-System

What is a whistleblower?

A whistleblower is a person who has information that is inaccessible to the general public and that can be used to detect legal violations. For example, in a company employees have information that proves a violation of cartel law (cartel agreements or abuse of a dominant position). Another example is that undertakings have information on antitrust practices by other undertakings they work with. With the Whistleblowing-System, documents that prove an antitrust violation can be sent to the AFCA quickly and easily.

Do I remain anonymous when sending documents?

The communication between the whistleblowers and the AFCA is working via secured anonymous mailboxes. It is technically ensured that information can neither be traced back to AFCA nor by other third parties. This ensures that you can remain completely anonymous and your documents are treated confidentially.

For more information, please have a look at this Explain-it-Video:

When does it make sense to use the Whistleblowing-System?

Taking advantage of the Whistleblowing-System is useful if you have documentation that demonstrates a cartel agreement or an abuse of a dominant position and you want to be sure that your anonymity is granted.

For more information, which documents might be useful for further investigations, please have a look at this video: