Dark pattern: Difference between revisions

Dark Patterns, also referred to as Deceptive Patterns, are deceptive design practices used in websites, applications, or digital interfaces to manipulate users into making decisions that benefit the organization implementing them, often at the expense of the user's best interests.<ref>Brignull, H., Leiser, M., Santos, C., & Doshi, K. (2023, April 25). Deceptive patterns – user interfaces designed to trick you. deceptive.design. Retrieved May 23, 2025, from https://www.deceptive.design/</ref> Coined by user-experience (UX) specialist Harry Brignull in 2010, the term has since become a critical focus in consumer advocacy, as these practices undermine transparency and user autonomy.

==Types and examples of dark patterns==

Dark patterns can be found across multiple industries and platforms. While some examples overlap or share common tactics, they all rely on manipulation and deception to achieve their goals. Listed below are notable types:

*'''[[Post-purchase EULA modification]]''': Critical [[End-user license agreement|end-user license agreements]] (EULAs) are hidden or presented only after purchase, making it difficult for users to review terms before committing. These agreements may be located inside packaging, under a lid, or displayed upon initial activation, limiting informed consent. This tactic overlaps with "forced continuity" and "roach motel" practices.

*'''Forced continuity''': Users are charged for a subscription or service after a free trial without adequate warning or an easy cancellation option.

*'''Roach motel''': Users can easily sign up for a service or subscription but will find it extremely difficult to cancel.

*'''Hidden costs''': Additional charges are revealed only at the final stages of a transaction, after users have already invested significant time.<ref>Brignull, H., Leiser, M., Santos, C., & Doshi, K. (2023, April 25). Deceptive patterns – Hidden Costs. deceptive.design. Retrieved May 23, 2025, from https://www.deceptive.design/types/hidden-costs</ref>

*'''Sneak into basket''': Items or services are automatically added to a shopping cart without explicit consent.

*'''Confirmshaming''': Users are guilt-tripped into taking a particular action by framing alternative options unfavorably (e.g., "No, I don't want to save money").<ref>Brignull, H., Leiser, M., Santos, C., & Doshi, K. (2023, April 25). Deceptive patterns – Confirmshaming. deceptive.design. Retrieved May 23, 2025, from https://www.deceptive.design/types/confirmshaming</ref>

*'''Privacy Zuckering''': Tricking users into sharing more personal information than intended, often through misleading privacy settings or pre-checked consent boxes.

*'''Disguised ads''': Ads are designed to look like native content or legitimate interface elements, tricking users into clicking.<ref>Brignull, H., Leiser, M., Santos, C., & Doshi, K. (2023, April 25). Deceptive patterns – Disguised ads. deceptive.design. Retrieved May 23, 2025, from https://www.deceptive.design/types/disguised-ads</ref>

*'''Trick wording''': Misleading language to elicit unintended responses from users.<ref>Brignull, H., Leiser, M., Santos, C., & Doshi, K. (2023, April 25). Deceptive patterns – Trick wording. deceptive.design. Retrieved May 23, 2025, from https://www.deceptive.design/types/trick-wording</ref>

*'''[[Fear of missing out]] (FOMO)''': The use of time-limited availability to instill a sense of urgency in users, causing them to devote more time or money in order to acquire a product, service, or digital item. This tactic overlaps with "misleading scarcity message" practices.

*'''Misleading scarcity messages''': Phrases like "Only 3 left in stock!" or "Offer expires in 10 minutes" are displayed to create a false sense of urgency, even when the product is widely available.

*'''Friend spam''': Users are encouraged to share personal information about their friends or contacts, which is then used for unsolicited marketing.

*'''Default-settings exploitation''': Options that benefit the company are pre-selected, such as extensive data sharing or auto-renewal of subscriptions.<ref name="edpb">European Data Protection Board. (2023). Deceptive design patterns in social media platform interfaces: how to recognise and avoid them (EDPB). European Data Protection Board. https://www.edpb.europa.eu/system/files/2023-02/edpb_03-2022_guidelines_on_deceptive_design_patterns_in_social_media_platform_interfaces_v2_en_0.pdf</ref>

*'''[[Bait-and-switch|Bait and Switch]]''': A user sets out to do one thing, but a different outcome happens instead. For example, clicking a button that says “Download” initiates a purchase instead.

*'''Visual Interference:''' Design elements such as misleading colours, button sizes, or placements make it hard for users to make informed choices (e.g., greyed-out opt-outs that are still clickable).<ref>Brignull, H., Leiser, M., Santos, C., & Doshi, K. (2023, April 25). Deceptive patterns – Visual interference. deceptive.design. Retrieved May 23, 2025, from https://www.deceptive.design/types/visual-interference</ref>

*'''Gamification for Manipulation:''' Using badges, streaks, or points to incentivize continued use or spending, beyond what's rational or in the user's best interest.

*'''Nagging:''' Repeatedly prompting the user to take an action that is potentially detrimental to the user - e.g., “Are you sure you don't want notifications?” shown on every login.<ref>Brignull, H., Leiser, M., Santos, C., & Doshi, K. (2023, April 25). Deceptive patterns – Nagging. deceptive.design. Retrieved May 23, 2025, from https://www.deceptive.design/types/nagging</ref>

*'''Hidden Subscription (a variant of Forced Continuity):''' The cost and terms of a subscription are hidden during sign-up or obscured in fine print, often leading users to unknowingly commit to recurring charges.<ref>Brignull, H., Leiser, M., Santos, C., & Doshi, K. (2023, April 25). Deceptive patterns – Hidden subscription. deceptive.design. Retrieved May 23, 2025, from https://www.deceptive.design/types/hidden-subscription</ref>

*'''Trick Timers:''' Timers that restart or extend themselves after expiring to simulate urgency and encourage immediate decisions based on false time pressure.

===Widespread examples===

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"

|-

|Google Chrome Ad settings

| - Default-settings exploitation

- Misdirection

|After installing Google Chrome, the user gets asked to check the "ad privacy" settings. There are 3 options in this menu, each with a toggle hidden inside a sub-menu. The first one (ad topics) is disabled by default, while the other 2 start off enabled. This can trick some users into assuming that all of the toggles are disabled by default after seeing the first one.

|}

==Dark patterns in video games==

A gaming dark pattern is something that is deliberately added to a game to cause an unwanted negative experience for the player with a positive outcome for the game developer.<ref>{{Cite web |title=DarkPattern.Games |url=https://www.darkpattern.games/ |access-date=2025-07-10 |website=Dark Pattern Games}}</ref>

*'''Temporal Dark Patterns:''' A temporal dark pattern is designed to get you to spend more time playing the game than you would have otherwise.

**'''Playing by Appointment:''' Being forced to play according to the game's schedule instead of yours.

**'''Daily Rewards:''' Encourages return visits every day and punishes you for missing a day.

**'''Playtime Limitations:''' Artificial limitations on playtime (such as through systems with recharging "Energy" or "Lives") build habitual play, when a player would otherwise burn themselves out through extensive play in the moment.

*'''Monetary Dark Patterns:''' A monetary dark pattern is one which tricks you into spending more money than you want to spend on a game.

**'''Currency Obfuscation:''' Exchange rate between real money and in-game currency disguises the real price of items. Hiding the true amount being spent.

**'''Premium Currency Hostage Cycle:''' Never allowing users to get their balance down to zero, resulting in small amounts of left over premium currency that can't be used without spending more. Always trapping an amount that cannot be used in an endless cycle. A real world example of this dark pattern was used in the Starbucks coffee app.<ref>{{Cite web |first= |date=2024-01-03 |title=A new complaint claims Starbucks' app traps customers in a cycle of spending |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/91004280/complaint-starbucks-app-spending-cycle |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240103063608/https://www.fastcompany.com/91004280/complaint-starbucks-app-spending-cycle |archive-date=2024-01-03 |access-date=2025-07-10 |website=Fast Company}}</ref>

**'''Free Rewards in Store:''' Users will be given the ability to claim free rewards, but will have to enter the in-game store to claim them. This is often made a daily reward to desensitize the user to said store, and make them less inclined to think twice about purchasing paid goods within it.

**'''Premium Currency Web:''' Several or sometimes many different premium currencies are made to all pay for distinct goods, often without a way to exchange them between each other. This ensures repeated payment across many different parts of the game, and further abstracts the amount of money spent on said game.

*'''Social Dark Patterns:''' Social dark patterns use your relationships with friends and family to benefit the game.

**'''Limited Time Offers:''' Certain digital goods are only offered for a limited time, then never offered again after an explicitly stated expiration date. This induces the Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO), artificial scarcity, and leverages the allure of exclusivity all at the same time to strongly incentivize a purchase.

*'''Combinatory Dark Patterns:''' These dark patterns are some combination of the types listed above, using multiple tactics for several purposes at once.

**'''Pay to Grind:''' Rewards are offered to the user behind a paywall that are not guaranteed, and that they must earn through repeated game play, daily logins, or other cyclical actions. Said user can just not be given what they supposedly "paid" for should they fail to meet the stated requirements. A popular example of this is the "Battle Pass".

**'''Recursive Rewards:''' Rewards are given for redeeming, earning, or purchasing other rewards to make the user feel better than they would with just receiving the initial rewards in isolation.

==Why dark patterns are problematic==

Dark patterns are more than just unethical design choices. They have real-world consequences for consumers and society. Key concerns include:

*'''Erosion of trust''': Users lose confidence in platforms that manipulate their choices, undermining long-term loyalty.

*'''Financial loss''': Consumers often incur unexpected charges or fees, because of deceptive practices.

*'''Privacy violations''': Trickery in consent-gathering leads to the misuse or over-collection of personal data.

===Regulatory efforts===

Governments and consumer-protection organizations are increasingly scrutinizing dark patterns. Key developments include:

*'''[[California Privacy Rights Act]] (CPRA)''': Prohibits the use of deceptive designs to obtain consent for data collection.

*'''[[General Data Protection Regulation|EU General Data Protection Regulation]] (GDPR)''': Mandates that consent be informed and freely given, effectively targeting privacy zuckering.

*'''[[Federal Trade Commission]] (FTC)''': In the U.S., the FTC has taken action against companies employing dark patterns, including fines and enforcement actions.

===Combating dark patterns===

Consumers and designers can take steps to identify and combat dark patterns by:

*'''Transparent design principles''': Advocating for ethical design practices that prioritize user autonomy and clarity.

*'''Third-party tools''': Using browser extensions and tools designed to block or highlight manipulative elements.

*'''Speaking up:''' Calling out these practices as needed serves to both raise awareness and push companies to do better.

===Conclusion===

Dark patterns undermine the principles of fair commerce and user empowerment, exploiting human psychology for profit. As awareness grows, collaboration among consumers, designers, and regulators will be essential to curb their prevalence and ensure digital spaces remain transparent, trustworthy, and healthy for everyone.

[[Category:Anti-Consumer_Practices]]