Technology to help consumers spot e-commerce platforms' dark patterns

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Mint. Watch This: Sudden Rise of Cybercrime in India: Mint Explains A dark pattern is a trick used in website or app design to make users do things they didn't plan to do, like signing up for unwanted subscriptions, buying extra items, or sharing personal information.

The use-case of the plug-in extension tool was shown to senior ministry officials during a recently held meeting and they found it to be highly accurate, the first person said. The detailed presentation showcased how the tool uses Large Language Models (LLMs), Generative AI, and other advanced models to detect dark patterns on e-commerce platforms and alert users.

"Dark patterns do not serve consumer interests and the regulatory framework discouraging their use should be strengthened. AI can be used to identify violations to strengthen enforcement.

Public awareness building on their rights and a strong reporting mechanism will also help in clamping down on dark patterns," said Anand Ramanathan, partner and consumer products and retail sector leader, Deloitte India. Also Read: Centre launches hackathon to identify ideas to tackle cyber threats The 13 dark patterns listed by the ministry’s guidelines are: false urgency, basket sneaking, confirm shaming, forced action, subscription trap, interface interference, bait and switch, drip pricing, disguised advertisements and nagging, trick wording, Saas billing and rogue malwares.

It will be launched after rigorous testing to ensure consumers can use it without any concerns, the second person said, adding that the project is at the developing stage. According to a KPMG report, India's e-commerce industry is growing rapidly and is expected to surpass the US to become the world's second-largest e-commerce market by