In News:

The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution has initiated a robust crackdown on Dark Patterns—deceptive design practices used on digital platforms to manipulate consumer behavior. A recent high-level stakeholder meeting in Delhi, chaired by Union Minister Prahlad Joshi, brought together representatives from major e-commerce platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, Zomato, and Ola, along with consumer organizations and law institutions, to address the growing concern.

What are Dark Patterns?

Dark Patterns are user interface designs that intentionally mislead or coerce consumers into making decisions they would not have otherwise made. These manipulative tactics exploit psychological principles and cognitive biases to serve the commercial interests of platforms—often at the cost of consumer autonomy.

Types of Dark Patterns Identified by the Government:

The Department of Consumer Affairs has officially recognized 13 types of dark patterns in its November 2023 guidelines. Prominent among them are:

• False Urgency: Creating artificial time pressure (e.g., “Only 1 seat left!”).
• Basket Sneaking: Adding items to the cart without user consent.
• Confirm Shaming: Using guilt-driven language to influence decisions.
• Subscription Trap: Making subscription easy but cancellation difficult.
• Interface Interference: Hiding crucial information or options.
• Bait and Switch: Advertising one offer and switching to another.
• Hidden Costs: Revealing extra charges only at checkout.
• Forced Action: Making users complete unrelated tasks to proceed.
• Disguised Ads, Trick Questions, Nagging, SAAS Billing Abuse, and Rogue Malware Links are other examples.

These practices have been found across multiple digital sectors including e-commerce, travel, OTT platforms, edtech, online banking, and quick commerce.

Consumer Impact and Rising Complaints:

The National Consumer Helpline has witnessed a significant increase in grievances related to dark patterns. Platforms are accused of eroding consumer trust, causing financial harm, breaching privacy, and distorting fair market practices.

According to LocalCircles, based on a survey conducted across 392 districts with feedback from 2.30 lakh consumers, the worst offenders include edtech, airline, and taxi app services. Notably, companies like Uber and Rapido were recently issued notices by the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) for coercing users into paying tips in advance.

Regulatory Measures in India:

• Consumer Protection Act, 2019: While it prohibits unfair trade practices, it lacks explicit provisions targeting dark patterns, making enforcement challenging.
• 2023 Guidelines on Dark Patterns: Released by the Department of Consumer Affairs, these guidelines define deceptive interfaces as violations of consumer rights and misleading advertisements.
• Self-Audit Mandate: E-commerce companies have been instructed to conduct internal audits and eliminate dark patterns from their platforms.
• Proposed Joint Working Group: A mechanism is being considered to increase industry awareness and enforce compliance.
• Voluntary and Legal Enforcement: The government has urged digital firms to integrate the guidelines into internal policies and consumer grievance redressal systems.

What is the News ?

The Central Government recently asked the public to share their thoughts on the draft rules for stopping and controlling deceptive tactics on the Internet.

Facts About:

• Dark patterns are sneaky and tricky design tricks that websites, apps, and digital platforms use to fool or manipulate users into doing things they might not want to do or making choices that aren't good for them.
• The term "dark patterns" was coined back in 2010 by Harry Brignull, a specialist in making sure user experiences are good.
• These tricky tricks are often used to get users to sign up for things, buy stuff, or share their personal info, among other stuff.
• Dark patterns work by using the way our brains work and making us do things we might not mean to do. They can be just a little misleading or really pushy and aggressive.
• There are 12 types of dark patterns including, Friend spam, Forced continuity, Disguised ads, Confirm shaming, Bait and switch, Hidden costs, Roach motel, Privacy zuckering, Misdirection, Price comparison prevention, Trick questions, Sneak into basket

       For example, "confirm shaming" is when they use words, videos, sounds, or anything else to make you feel bad or embarrassed so you'll do what they want you to do.