Have you ever received a random text notification from your bank informing you that your subscription for a product you thought you had unsubscribed from has been renewed?

This has happened to many of us. You come across an intriguing post or social media ad that convinces you to purchase a product. Like the gullible humans we all can be (myself included), you enter your card details and think, "I'll unsubscribe later." But when the time comes, unsubscribing turns into a daunting task.

Such scenarios are what we refer to as dark patterns in design. Specifically, this is an example of what's known as a roach motel.

A roach motel refers to a situation where it’s easy to enter a particular service (like subscribing to a product) but difficult to exit (like unsubscribing from it). Companies may deliberately make the process of unsubscribing or canceling a subscription less obvious or more cumbersome, leading to situations where users unintentionally remain subscribed and get charged.

Alternatively, this could also be seen as a lack of clear communication or transparency from the company, where users aren't adequately reminded about their subscription status or renewal dates, resulting in unexpected charges.

These Dark patterns in UX design are the deceptive tactics used to manipulate users into making choices they might not have otherwise made. These design features prioritize company interests over user autonomy, often leading to frustrating and harmful experiences for consumers.

Types of Dark Patterns

1. Bait and switch

This is a tactic where a product is advertised at a price lower than it's market price to attract customers. Once you try to purchase the product, you are informed that the product is out of stock and shown other similar available options, at a higher price.

To convince you to purchase the product, the seller of the product will come up with excuses. You will be told that the available product offers better features and works better than the initial product in the advertisement, or that the cheap advertised one was only for the first few customers.

2. Friend spam

Ever joined a new site or app, thinking it would be fun, only to have them blast out invites to your entire contact list? That's exactly what friend spam is. Those annoying mass invites that nobody asked for.

Imagine you sign up for a new fitness tracker (let's call it "FitLinka"). A week later, all your friends get messages saying you invited them to join & connect with you. Awkward, right?

We all want to connect with friends online, but friend spam is not the way to do it!

An example would be: I signed up for a certain platform, let's call it platform A. After a few weeks, my contacts started receiving emails that I have sent them an invitation to connect with me

3. Privacy Zuckering

This pattern is when designers combine different techniques to get people to reveal much more information about themselves than they intended to.

The major problem is that they trick you into sharing more than you meant to, and this information can be sold to other companies.

Recent research by the British National Health Service uncovered that 4 out of 5 health apps are so bad, they may be putting patient's health at risk. Also, 7 out of 10 apps designed to prevent suicide fail to meet even basic measures of clinical quality.

Oftentimes, you may wonder how these social media platforms generate their revenue. They make it from you and your attention. Selling you data with the aim of 'personalizing your experience'. You may perform a google search for healthy keto diets. Now suddenly, when you open your TikTok or Instagram, your feed is filled with keto ads and videos. Shock huh??

4. Confirmshaming

Confirmshaming is when designers use manipulative language and emotionally charged design to make you feel guilty about cancelling a service/leaving. It's like being pressured by a salesperson who won't take "no" for an answer.

Imagine you're trying to unsubscribe from emails, but the website makes you click a button that says "No thanks, I hate saving money"

An example would be Duolingo's new owl that was redesigned to make you feel even more guilty about quitting/slacking behind than you did before

5. Misdirection

Most platforms that use Confirmshaming often pair it with misdirection. This is when designers use tactics to hide the things that they don't want you to see and draw attention to what they want you to do in order to help you behave the way that they want.

Example: When shopping online, you may buy a product priced at $12. However, upon going to your cart, you find that there are other additional fees such as tax and service fee. You end up paying extra.

Social media platforms are like busy marketplaces. The more time you spend there, the more data they can collect and sell. Data is their goldmine!. This can be a powerful tool, but it also raises concerns about privacy and how much control we have over our information.

As digital interactions increase, understanding these patterns becomes essential for both designers and users aiming for ethical web practices.

The world of technology is constantly evolving, and laws are struggling to keep pace with these changes, be mindful of how you use social media and the data you share. Remember, your attention is valuable, and it's up to you to decide on how you want it to be used.