We know that e-commerce is booming all over the world and it is also known that teaching sessions have been carried out in most parts of the world in order to make people understand how to use the online platforms for shopping in the most effective manner and not get scammed due to it. However, we know that there are good people and then there are bad people and that will continue as long as humanity exists. People will try to exploit those who don’t know how to use something. In e-commerce, this thing is called deception with the help of ‘dark pattern’ sites which trick the users into thinking that their item will be gone soon so they are enticed to purchase it or they show discounts which are fake in nature to do something that they weren’t going to do regularly.
A report from the Japan Times mentions that “More than 40% of consumers in Japan have fallen prey to deceptive web or app designs known as “dark patterns” that trick them into making choices they would not have otherwise made, according to a recent survey by a Japanese web design company. The online survey, taken in August and involving 799 respondents between the ages of 18 and 69, found 46.1% of respondents had been swindled by dark patterns, while 68.8% said they had seen such designs, Concent said in late November.
Examples include unintentionally signing up to subscriptions or feeling inclined to purchase an item due to misleading “limited stock” notices. Among seven examples of dark patterns, the most commonly experienced was site visitors being asked to register for membership when they only wanted to browse products, at 46.3%, followed by 43.9% who said important information was presented in a small font.
A total of 40.3% said it had been arduous or time-consuming to cancel memberships or subscriptions, while 29.2% said subscriptions were displayed as if they were one-time purchases. In a multiple-choice question regarding countermeasures, 76.3% said consumers needed to be vigilant, 71.8% said legislation was required and 71.0% answered that companies should endeavor not to use dark patterns. “It’s important to be able to recognize dark patterns to avoid becoming a victim,” said Miki Kawasaki, who conducted the research.
