May 13, 2025
In a world where digital convenience promises endless choice, what is this “choice” really costing us?
Deceptive and manipulative design features—known as dark patterns—are embedded into websites and apps to influence our choices, often not in our best interests. From subscription traps that make cancelling nearly impossible to pre-ticked boxes that share more of our data, these subtle yet sinister practices may appear as mild annoyances individually, but their cumulative effect is costing Australians financially, compromising privacy, and degrading online experiences.
Churchill Fellow Chandni Gupta travelled across seven countries, meeting with over 25 organisations and interviewing more than 70 experts to understand how different jurisdictions are tackling these issues and what Australia can learn from their approaches.
Protecting consumer wellbeing requires more than just financial protections—it means ensuring people have genuine choice and agency in the digital economy.
While jurisdictions around the world are implementing specific laws against dark patterns, Australia lacks economy-wide protections against unfair trading practices.
Combating dark patterns requires legislative reform, regulatory enforcement, business accountability, and incentives that prioritise fairness over exploitation.
As technologies evolve, dark patterns are being supercharged with AI, becoming more dynamic and difficult to detect—particularly in non-visual interfaces.
CPRC welcomes the opportunity to work further on this issue with government, regulators, policy makers, academia and the community sector.
If you are in one of the above groups and would like a one-on-one briefing for your organisation contact our team today.
Join Churchill Fellow Chandni Gupta as she shares international insights on dark patterns and discusses practical approaches for Australia at the Made to Manipulate webinar. Through webinars, and stakeholder briefings, this tour will explore how we can create a digital economy that Australians enjoy, not just endure.
Register for webinarThis report was completed as part of the Churchill Fellowship 
August 20, 2024
Subscribing is easy. It often takes seconds of our time. Frictionless processes mean that consumers can easily sign-up to streaming services, marketplace loyalty programs, health and fitness regimes. When a consumer no longer needs nor wants that subscription service however, the experience is often the inverse.
June 08, 2022
Dark patterns steer the choices we make online in ways that benefit businesses but can leave consumers worse off.
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