Minister of State for Consumer Affairs Nidhi Khare on Tuesday warned e-commerce companies against adopting deceptive user interface designs known as “dark patterns”, saying such practices violate consumer rights and amount to unfair trade.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs defines dark patterns as deceptive UI/UX designs on platforms that mislead users into unintended actions, undermine consumer autonomy and decision-making, and constitute misleading advertising and unfair trade practices.
Read: Government bans 'dark patterns' on e-commerce platforms, issues guidelines
According to an official statement, during a session with stakeholders, Khare highlighted various ways in which online platforms can refrain from using designs that mislead consumers into making unintended purchases or subscriptions.
According to an official statement, she suggested improvements such as relying on consumer feedback, monitoring user satisfaction and returning customers, using app features to identify non-compliant patterns, and self-auditing for specific dark patterns.
The session was attended by representatives from Indian Institutes of Technology, Banaras Hindu University, All India Gaming Federation and companies like Zomato, EaseMyTrip, Urban Company, Uber and CRED.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, which notified guidelines to prevent dark patterns in November 2023, specified 13 dark pattern designs including fake emergency alerts, subscription traps, basket sneaking, coercive actions, confirmation shaming, interface interference, drip pricing, trick questions, deceptive advertising, bait-and-switch pricing and persistent tactics.
Initially, 10 dark patterns were added and later, after public consultations, three more were added. All Indian merchants, advertisers and online platforms offering products and services will be subject to these guidelines.
The guidelines added that the use of dark patterns will be considered as deceptive advertising, unfair trade practices or violation of consumer rights and will attract penalties as per the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act.
“In the emerging digital commerce landscape, dark patterns are increasingly being used by platforms to mislead consumers by manipulating their purchasing choices and behaviour,” Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh had earlier told PTI.
(With inputs from PTI)
