DesignNQ 2018 - Casting Light on Dark Patterns

Technology presents a unique opportunity for online tricksters and marketing masterminds. In this discussion, we talked about Dark Patterns, user interfaces intentionally designed to confuse, deceive and exploit and took a look at just how the big technology companies achieve this.

It's an eye-opening process trying to book a flight on Jetstar, close your account on Spotify, not give up your contact list on Facebook Messenger or book without feeling pressured on Expedia or Booking.com, but we got there together.

From DesignNQ on 22 August 2018 at iNQ.

Transcript

2. Dark Patterns Into the light
3. Me David Beitey @davidjb / @davidjb_ I wear many hats ♂ UX designer, Developer, Sys Admin...
4. tl;dr Dark Patterns control your behaviour Many sites/apps use them Defend yourself Think before implementing
5. Thanks!
6. Share, ask questions, discuss (tell me I'm wrong)
7. ?
8. Geo for A theme for Twitter Bootstrap, from Divshot. Typography Navbar Buttons Forms Tables Miscellaneous h1. Heading 1 h2. Heading 2 h3. Heading 3 h4. Heading 4 h5. Heading 5 h6. Heading 6 Example body text Nullam quis risus eget urna mollis ornare vel eu leo. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Nullam id dolor id nibh ultricies vehicula ut id elit. Vivamus sagittis lacus vel augue laoreet rutrum faucibus dolor auctor. Duis mollis, est non commodo luctus, nisi erat porttitor ligula, eget lacinia odio sem nec elit. Donec sed odio dui. Example addresses Twitter, Inc. 795 Folsom Ave, Suite 600 San Francisco, CA 94107 P: (123) 456-7890 Full Name first.last@gmail.com Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Integer posuere erat a ante. — Someone famous in Source Title Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Integer posuere erat a ante. Someone famous in Source Title — Project name Project name Project name Project name Typography Navbars Bootstrap To get Home Home Link Link Link Link Link Link Dropdown Dropdown Search Link Link Dropdown Dropdown Home Home Link Link Link Link Link Link Dropdown Dropdown Search Link Link Dropdown Dropdown Geo Geo GitHub GitHub Guestbook Guestbook Tweet Tweet Download Download Free Static Web Hosting Free Static Web Hosting
12. This is a required field!
14. Harry Brignull, darkpatterns.org @darkpatterns Dark Patterns are tricks used in websites and apps that make you buy or sign up for things that you didn't mean to.
15. (Anti-)Pattern Library
16. Intentionally 1. Confuse 2. Deceive 3. Exploit
17. What have you seen?
21. Hidden costs Unexpected charges appear at the checkout (drip pricing)
23. Bait and Switch Hey, where'd that rug go?
25. Misdirection Look, a distraction!
28. Confirmshaming Guilting & shaming you into compliance
29. Impact Misled customers are angry & unhappy Regulatory action (ACCC) Fines / business impact
31. S I G N U P ALREADY HAVE AN ACCOUNT? LO G I N Get the right music, right now Listen to millions of songs for free. Search & discover music you'll love Create playlists of your favorite music
32. Roach motel Anything that's easy to get into, but hard to get out of.
33. Forced Continuity Automatic charges after a "free trial" and hard-to- cancel memberships.
42. Privacy Zuckering Being tricked into sharing more information than you want. Eponymously named.
44. $120B drop in one day
47. Live examples https://booking.com.au https://expedia.com.au
48. <div class="js_sr_persuation_msg"> <span class="in­high­demand­not­scarce"> In high demand! </span> </div>
49. <div class="d­deal d­deal__lonely d­deal__preset­deal" aria­hidden="true"> <div class="d­deal­b d­deal­preset"> <p> Mid­Year Deal </p> </div> </div>
50. To give you an idea of the price range, we looked at how much this was booked for when it sold out. The price we're showing is based on the average price per night.
51. <article class="decoys"> ... </article>
52. Disguised Ads Ads disguised as content or navigation so you'll click them
53. This is a Preferred property. They provide excellent service, a great value, and have awesome reviews from Booking.com guests. They might pay Booking.com a little more to be in this program.
54. The discount is based on the third highest current price of the property for rooms with the same booking conditions in a 20-day window around your check-in date (10 days before and 10 days after check-in date; if less than 10 days are between today and the check-in date, we will use the corresponding number of days after the check-in date to result in a 20-day total). To ensure we are making a fair comparison, we always use the same reservation conditions (meal plan, cancellation policy and room type). This means that you get the same room for a lower price compared to other check-in dates at the same time of year.
56. Dark Patterns are everywhere. It's their entire business.
57. Browser filters for Dark Patterns for uBlock Origin https://github.com/davidjb/dont-panic
58. Before and After https://booking.com.au https://expedia.com.au
59. David's cheat sheet If you feel: pressure, panic, confusion, or see intrusive or "weird" behaviour... It's likely a Dark Pattern.
60. So... what to do about it.
61. As a (UI) designer Think before you design
62. Remember your users
63. Avoid being (too) metric-diven
64. Test your UX & design Tricks frustrate users Could affect your image & brand
65. Being clear makes business sense
67. You might have to be honest (legally) ACCC, ACMA, Spam Act, GDPR, etc
68. Work with your clients/stakeholders
69. Do unto others
70. As a user Be aware
71. Carefully read everything you agree to & Be prepared to back out
73. Check all app permissions & dialogs Check online account settings Check your bank statements Revoke permissions (eg Facebook login)
74. Apply pressure Complain to company Leverage social media
75. Report if necessary Contact ACCC/ACMA/authorities Consider legal action
76. tl;dr Dark Patterns = deceptive UI Expect them Work with your stakeholders Do unto others Raise your voice as a user
77. Questions/Thoughts? David Beitey https://davidjb.com