Dark patterns are elements of digital user interface (UI) which are designed to take advantage of inherent psychological biases and lead users towards making certain choices. In user-centred UI design, the goal of the designer is to maximise usability and enhance a user’s experience of a digital product or service. Dark patterns are carefully crafted UI design features which invert the user-centred goal to instead influence users to make choices which maximise the interests of the online service provider (often without the user’s awareness).

Dark pattern examples

​Almost every user of the internet will have been exposed to dark patterns, but often they’re not aware of them.  Once users are aware of the concept and know what to look for, however, they can be easier to spot.  Examples of dark patterns may include the following:

Scarcity techniques involve an online service provider indicating that there is low stock or that a product or service is currently in high demand in an effort to create a (sometimes false) sense of urgency for the user to complete their purchase.

Scarcity techniques may also exist through time-based scarcity.  This can involve an indication that an offer or sale is ending in a short period of time.  This form of scarcity technique may also be accompanied by a countdown timer indicating the hours, minutes or seconds that a customer has left to take advantage of a particular deal.

Preventing price comparisons techniques

Preventing price comparison techniques occurs when website hosts make it difficult to compare the prices of various products or services offered on their platform.  This may be achieved through different bundles or levels of services being offered to consumers where it is unclear what the individual prices of the corresponding goods or services are or where additional extras (such as service fees) are not added until after the point of price comparison.  Through this system, users are effectively unable to make an informed decision about what is the most cost-effective choice or which is most appropriate for them.Preventing price comparisons techniques

Trick question techniques

Tick question techniques involve questions being intentionally worded, framed or ordered in a manner that tricks users into providing an answer or selecting an option which they did not intend.  Upon first glance, a question or ‘checkbox’ option may appear to be asking one thing, however, when a user studies the question more closely, it may be asking a distinctly different question. 

This might be achieved through double negatives, complex wording or alternating whether checkboxes are ‘opt-in’ or ‘opt-out’ questions.

Friend spam techniques

Friend spam techniques are a kind of impersonation.  They occur when a website, platform or even game asks for your email or social media permissions and then automatically posts to your social media, emails people in your contact list or sends private messages which all appear to have come directly from you.  This occurs as people may be more likely to use a particular good or service if it has been personally endorsed by someone they know or are friends with.

“Default” setting techniques

“Default” setting techniques involve the default settings on a device or account being set at the maximum level of data sharing or most privacy-intrusive option. 

This technique relies on the fact that many users are unlikely to look adjust default settings.

Inertia selling techniques

Inertia selling techniques, also known as ‘sneak into basket’, occurs when a user is shopping online and additional items have been added to their shopping cart.  Items may be automatically added to a user’s cart, or there may have been an ‘opt-in’ checkbox to add an additional item that was automatically ticked as a default setting.

Forced action techniques

Forced action techniques involve forcing users to perform a certain action in order to access or continue accessing a function on a platform. This might take the form of requiring users to review certain settings in order to continue accessing an application, or it may exist as a required step in order to complete a process.

The future of dark patterns

Using and capitalising on human psychology to encourage consumers to engage in certain behaviour is nothing new.  Indeed, it is what the marketing and advertising industry has been doing for a very long time.  For example, many of us are aware that fast food outlets use the colour red to drive appetite, and that retail store layouts are designed to make customers walk past a larger number of products than might otherwise need to be the case.

However, when online, dark patterns can be used with potentially greater impact.  The use of dark patterns is on the radar of regulators globally, particularly when they are seen to restrict the autonomy of online users and their ability to make free and informed decisions.  You can read about regulatory developments in dark patterns in our articles here:

• The new EU Dark Pattern laws: changes to the Digital Services Act
• Is this the start of a global war on Dark Patterns
• Regulators shine a light on dark patterns

Authors: Tim Gole, Jen Bradley and Ziggy Liszukiewicz