In an advisory issued on Saturday, the Consumer Affairs Ministry instructed platforms to review their entire user interface for any features that undermine customer choice or amount to unfair trade practices.
New Delhi: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has given all e-commerce companies three months to audit their websites and apps for “dark patterns” — deceptive design tactics that nudge or trick shoppers into unintended purchases or disclosures.
Officials added that show-cause notices have already gone out to several unnamed platforms found flouting the agency’s 2023 guidelines, which identified 13 specific dark patterns like false urgency, basket sneaking, confirm shaming, forced action, subscription trap, interface interference, bait-and-switch, drip pricing, disguised advertisements, nagging, trick wording, SaaS billing and rogue malware.
In an advisory issued on Saturday, the Consumer Affairs Ministry instructed platforms to review their entire user interface for any features that undermine customer choice or amount to unfair trade practices. After completing the audit, firms have been asked to file self-declarations certifying that their storefronts are free of such tactics, a move the CCPA says will build public trust and foster a fairer digital marketplace.
A joint working group comprising government ministries, regulators, consumer groups and law-school experts will monitor compliance and roll out awareness campaigns. The directive forms part of a broader push to tighten consumer safeguards as online retail surges across India.
