Govt seeks public feedback on draft guidelines for dark patterns

In a bid to protect consumers from deceptive and misleading practices, the Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India, has sought public comments on draft guidelines for the prevention and regulation of dark patterns.

These guidelines define dark patterns as any practices or deceptive design patterns using UI/UX (user interface/user experience) interactions on any platform; designed to mislead or trick users into doing something they originally did not intend or want to do.

“The draft guidelines for the prevention and regulation of dark patterns have been framed after detailed deliberations with all stakeholders, including e-commerce platforms, law firms, government and Voluntary Consumer Organisations (VCOs),” stated a release from the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution.