Groups vs. Booking Websites: Investigating Collaborative Strategies Against Deceptive Patterns

Deceptive (or dark) patterns are interface design strategies widely used in apps and online services that manipulate users into making decisions against their best interests. Prior work has explored their effects on individuals and potential countermeasures. We aimed to investigate how collocated groups of users handle deceptive patterns when they encounter them collectively. To this end, we observed seven groups of three users booking flights and rental cars together by browsing the same real websites on separate devices in the same room. We found users collaborating to address deceptive patterns by synchronizing, helping others, and through mutual comparisons. We provide first observations and insights into the strategies that emerge in groups dealing with deceptive patterns in social scenarios.