The Department of Consumer Affairs will launch “Jago Grahak Jago App”, “Jagriti App”, and “Jagriti Dashboard” for public use on National Consumers Day on 24 December.

As part of the government’s broader strategy and ongoing efforts to strengthen consumer protection in the digital era and curb unfair practices in e-commerce and online services, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) notified the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns in 2023 and specified 13 dark patterns, namely: 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.

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The CCPA had earlier issued notices to IndiGo Airlines and BookMyShow under Consumer Protection Act, 2019 for alleged Misleading Advertisement/Unfair Trade Practices in the form of deceptive design patterns/dark patterns.

It came to the notice of the CCPA that BookMyShow had allegedly imposed an extra charge on customers after the booking of confirmed tickets. Re 1 per ticket was automatically added as a contribution towards ‘BookASmile’ in the form of a pre-tick without the consent of the consumer. This amounted to ‘Basket Sneaking’ as defined under the clause (2) of Annexure 1 of Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023. After CCPA’s intervention BookMyShow addressed the issue of ‘Basket Sneaking’ by giving customers an option to choose whether or not they wish to contribute towards BookASmile.

Based on the grievances lodged at National Consumer Helpline, the Central Consumer Protection Authority issued notice to InterGlobe Aviation Limited (IndiGo Airline) for alleged unfair trade practices / dark pattern pertaining to ‘Confirm Shaming’ on Indigo Airlines App and Lack of Transparent Communication on Seat Assignment. After the CCPA’s intervention, IndiGo Airline has resolved the issue by changing the wording to “No, I will not add to the trip”, which ensures clarity and neutrality.

The wordings used earlier were “No I will take risk”, which amounted to ‘confirm shaming’ which is a Dark Pattern. In another issue, the Airline was directed to address the issue with the “Skip” button on the “Selection of Seat” page and to undertake a comprehensive re-examination and redesign of their web check-in page. Accordingly, the airline addressed the issue of ‘Preferential Seating’ by modification of their website/app by providing a disclaimer on the left side of “skip button” where it is written that “You can skip preferred seat selection and complete your booking. IndiGO will auto-assign a seat prior to your travel”.

As part of its legislative intent, the CCPA held several meetings with industry stakeholders and requested them to refrain from using Dark Patterns which amount to Unfair Trade Practice under the Consumer Protection Act 2019. The CCPA has also focused on expanding its consumer outreach by utilising its social media platforms through informative posts, videos and stories on dark patterns.

It has trained it’s team at National Consumer Helpline to effectively address the grievances pertaining to Dark Patterns.

The Department of Consumer Affairs is now also equipped with means and resources to identify dark patterns on e-commerce platforms and is soon going to empower consumers with these tools. As part of the intensive research done by students, the three apps have been coded, namely; ‘Jago Grahak Jago App,’ ‘Jagriti App,’ and ‘Jagriti Dashboard’.

These are part of an intelligent cyber-physical system, which operates in real-time and runs on the Airawat AI Supercomputer under the National Supercomputing Mission for AI and Data Analytics. This innovative system analyses existing text and design elements on e-commerce platforms to determine whether they are being used to influence consumer psychology.

The ‘Jago Grahak Jago App’ provides essential e-commerce information about all URLs during a consumer’s online activities, alerting them if any URL may be unsafe and requires caution. Meanwhile, the ‘Jagriti App,’ allows users to report URLs where they suspect the presence of one or more dark patterns declared illegal. These reports are then registered as complaints to the CCPA for possible redressal and subsequent action.

Additionally, the CCPA is being strengthened with the ‘Jagriti Dashboard’ which is used to generate real-time reports on e-commerce URLs for the presence of the aforementioned dark patterns, enhancing the capability to monitor and regulate online consumer interactions effectively. This solution will aid the CCPA in identifying dark patterns, speeding up the resolution of consumer disputes and will go a long way in curbing practices that are detrimental to consumer interests.