Digital platforms across India are increasingly employing manipulative design tactics to trick users into unintended actions, prompting urgent government intervention and raising serious consumer protection concerns.
What Are Dark Patterns?
Dark patterns are user interfaces that have been carefully crafted to trick users into doing things they originally did not intend or want to do. The term was coined by user experience designer Harry Brignull in 2010, who defined these as deceptive design patterns that manipulate users into actions like buying overpriced insurance or signing up for recurring bills.
