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Dark patterns are UX ploys designed to trick you into spending money, say, or make it nearly impossible to unsubscribe.
Not sure what dark patterns look like? Here's some common examples across online shopping, social media, search, and more. 1/
Not sure what dark patterns look like? Here's some common examples across online shopping, social media, search, and more. 1/
First, you should know what to look out for. If you’ve ever found it easier to sign up for an account than it is to cancel it, for instance, you’ve stumbled onto a dark pattern. Here’s some tips on how to spot them: 2/ https://wired.trib.al/SME1S9V
Facebook especially has a history of being pushy on its platform, so much so that the EFF coined the term “Privacy Zuckering,” meaning when “you are tricked into publicly sharing more information about yourself than you really intended to.” 3/ https://wired.trib.al/oK4M9PV
Some of the most egregious examples of dark patterns are on shopping sites, where profits are directly at stake. Last year, researchers studied roughly 11,000 shopping sites and found dark patterns on more than 11 percent of them. 4/ https://wired.trib.al/N0rbZug
The more popular the retail website, the more likely it is to use dark patterns. They’re especially problematic in the financial services industry, which is already criticized for using overly complicated jargon 5/ https://wired.trib.al/6pvB9MC
Finally, seemingly small design tweaks to things like the Google search results interface (like one that was made in January of this year) can blur the lines between advertising and organic search results. 6/ https://wired.trib.al/I5ooA2z
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