National Advertisers Association Act | Dark Patterns: Regulators Beg Companies to Avoid the Dark Side – Privacy Protection

Davis+Gilbert will host an ANA Legal webinar on August 9. Davis+Gilbert Privacy + Data Security Partner Gary Kibel and Davis+Gilbert Advertising + Marketing Partner Paavana L. Kumar will present a session titled “Dark patterns: Regulators beg companies to avoid the dark side.”

Session overview

State and federal regulators are increasingly focused on combating so-called “dark patterns” – essentially, deceptive practices or formats that manipulate or mislead consumers into taking actions they would not take or would not take otherwise. Some state privacy laws specifically define and prohibit the use of “dark patterns,” while the FTC has held workshops and issued a policy statement warning against the use of “dark patterns” in relationship with negative options or subscription programs. These “dark patterns” may involve practices that hide or conceal the fact that a consumer is enrolling in a program that involves a recurring fee, make it unreasonably difficult for a consumer to cancel participation in such a program, or undermine choice of the user by employing tactics such as “confirm shame”.

This webinar will cover:

• Why the FTC is putting renewed emphasis on deceptive practices and formats that undermine consumer choice




• How dark patterns are treated in privacy laws




• How businesses should carefully design their purchase flows, cancellation methods, privacy practices and other consumer communications to avoid criticism




• Risks of regulatory investigations and/or private prosecutions

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide on the subject. Specialist advice should be sought regarding your particular situation.