Supreme Court: IBC Mechanism Cannot Replace Decree Execution or Recovery Proceedings  ||  SC Orders Closure of School Over Loan Default, Directs Police-Assisted Takeover under SARFAESI Act  ||  MP HC: HC Lacks Jurisdiction to Appoint an Arbitrator in International Commercial Disputes  ||  Allahabad HC Imposes Rs 15L Costs on Husband For Filing False Affidavits in Maintenance Proceedings  ||  MP HC Directs ASI to Upload Bhojshala–Kamal Maula Survey Video on Secure Platform For Litigant  ||  Bombay HC: Public Gathering Does Not Justify Handcuffing, Awarded ?50,000 Compensation  ||  Madras HC: Woman’s Dignity Linked to Right to Shelter; Orders Restoration of Demolished Home  ||  SC: Absence of Independent Witnesses is Not Fatal if Injured Eyewitness Testimony is Sterling  ||  Supreme Court: Prosthetic Limb Costs Must Be Compensated To Restore Victims’ Dignity  ||  Supreme Court: Probate Can be Revoked For Non-Impleadment of Parties and Suppression of Facts    

Central Consumer Protection Authority issues ‘Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023’ - (08 Dec 2023)

Consumer

The Central Consumer Protection Authority, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 18 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, has issued “Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023” on 30th November, 2023 for prevention and regulation of dark patterns listing 13 specified dark patterns. To safeguard consumers from unfair trade practices in e-commerce, the Department of Consumer Affairs has also notified the Consumer Protection (E-commerce) Rules, 2020 under the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. These rules outline the responsibilities of e-commerce entities and specify the liabilities of marketplace and inventory e-commerce entities, including provisions for customer grievance redressal.

Dark patterns involve using design and choice architecture to deceive, coerce, or influence consumers into making choices that are not in their best interest. Dark patterns encompass a wide range of manipulative practices such as drip pricing, disguised advertisement, bait and switch, false urgency etc. Such practices fall under the category of "unfair trade practices" as defined under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

The CCPA has notified the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022 on 9th June, 2022. These guidelines provide for; (a) conditions for an advertisement to be non-misleading and valid; (b) certain stipulations in respect of bait advertisements and free claim advertisements; and (c) duties of manufacturer, service provider, advertiser and advertising agency. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has notified framework on ‘Online Consumer Reviews — Principles and Requirements for their Collection, Moderation and Publication’ for safeguarding and protecting consumer interest from fake and deceptive reviews in e-commerce. The standards are voluntary and are applicable to every online platform which publishes consumer reviews. The guiding principles of the standard are integrity, accuracy, privacy, security, transparency, accessibility and responsiveness.

Tags : GUIDELINES   ISSUANCE   DARK PATTERNS  

Share :        

Disclaimer | Copyright 2026 - All Rights Reserved