Are Indian consumers falling prey to marketing tactics? Dark patterns like hidden fees, and fake countdown timers used by e-commerce websites or apps are manipulating consumer decisions while shopping. The government has recognised 13 such dark patterns and has introduced three apps/websites to ensure consumer rights.
What are these 13 dark patterns?
Dark patterns/practices are design tricks used in apps and websites to push users into doing things they may not want to do — like paying extra, giving away personal data, or signing up for services. These tricks use confusing language, hidden charges, and sneaky visuals.
In November 2023, the Consumer Affairs Department officially identified 13 types of dark patterns as unfair trade practices under Indian law. These include:
- Drip pricing – extra fees added only at the last step
- False urgency – fake countdown timers
- Bait and switch – showing one thing, then offering another
- Confirm shaming – making users feel guilty for refusing
- Subscription traps – hard-to-cancel services
Other practices include forced action, hidden ads, trick questions, nagging, basket sneaking, and rogue pop-ups that act like system warnings.
Government stepping in to ensure consumers’ rights
Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Pralhad Joshi chaired a stakeholder meeting on May 18, with top e-commerce platforms, industry bodies, consumer groups, and law universities. Companies like Amazon, Flipkart, Zomato, Google, Paytm, Uber, Apple, Meta, and Swiggy were in attendance, alongside associations like CAIT, FICCI, NASSCOM, and PHDCCI.
The Minister urged full implementation of the guidelines, stating that companies must not wait for enforcement action but should proactively remove these deceptive practices. He stressed that doing so would not only ensure compliance but also build consumer trust.
Consumer complaints related to dark patterns have surged on the National Consumer Helpline. Joshi has directed companies to conduct regular audits and clean up any misleading design or content.
New apps launched to fight dark patterns
The Indian government has also launched three important digital tools in partnership with IIT BHU:
- Jagriti App, which allows users to report dark patterns and flag suspicious websites.
- Jago Grahak Jago App, which gives real-time safety scores for e-commerce links.
- Jagriti Dashboard, which helps regulators track and analyse dark patterns across platforms.
All in all, these apps are aimed at helping consumers take informed decision and buy at fair price.