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.