Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #darkpatterns

Most recents (23)

Today's Twitter threads (a Twitter thread).

Inside: Look at all the great stuff we lost because of inflation scare-talk; and more!

Archived at: pluralistic.net/2023/05/05/wmd…

#Pluralistic

1/ A vintage postcard illustra...
Tonight (5/5), I'm at @BooksIncStores #MountainView with @mkapor for *Red Team Blues*:

booksinc.net/event/cory-doc…

Sat, I'm in #Berkeley for #BABF2023 at 1530h with @glynnwashington:

baybookfest.org/session/cory-d…

Sun, it's an 11h event with @dellsystem:

baybookfest.org/session/chokep…

2/ Image
Look at all the great stuff we lost because of inflation scare-talk: We swapped pandemic aid, new spending and minimum wage hikes for wage suppression and mass layoffs.



3/    Image: Mosaic 36 (modifi...
Read 24 tweets
Every year, Americans spend billions on #TaxPrep services, paying a heavily concentrated industry of giant, wildly profitable firms to send the #IRS information it already has. 1/ An ogrish, tophatted, cigar-chomping giant holds the US Capi
If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this thread to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

pluralistic.net/2023/02/20/tur… 2/
Despite the fact that most other rich countries have a far more efficient process, many Americans believe that adopting this process here is either impossible, immoral, or both. 3/
Read 39 tweets
1/ Druckfrisch: LG München I (33 O 14776/19) zu #Tracking, § 25 #TTDSG, #IAB #TCF, #RealTimeBidding, #DarkPatterns - focus_de (n.rkr.).

vzbv.de/sites/default/…

vzbv.de/urteile/einsat…

Glückwunsch an @TilmanHerbrich @DianaEttig @vzbv.
Dank an @wolfiechristl.

#TeamDatenschutz
2/ Als Einstieg und Zusammenfassung kann der Beitrag von @publictorsten auf @heise_online dienen:

heise.de/news/Verbrauch…

Und wer Spaß an Meinungspluralität hat, liest sich unter dem Artikel das Heise-Forum dazu durch:
3/ Der Tatbestand stellt den Sachverhalt (streitig und unstreitig) technisch so detailliert dar, wie bislang kein anderes mir bekanntes deutsches Urteil. Lesenswert, hier Beispiel #RealTimeBidding und #Xandr.

Vortrag Kläger (S. 158):
Read 37 tweets
I was watching the Personalization versus Customization video on the Nielsen Norman Group YouTube channel (). Looking from the lens of social psychology, I think a video on Personalization versus Comparison (Comparative Personalization) would sketch
the future roadmap of digital communication design. This is because I've been thinking about the many ways personalization can be taken advantage of socio-politically at a global level while watching the video 'How short-form video is rotting your brain?'
Read 7 tweets
Remarkable to see FTC draw out the mindset of A/B split testing as a catalyst for breeding deceptive design patterns in UI toward a harmful UX. #DarkPatterns ftc.gov/reports/bringi…
no one worried that covert, unethical, profit-driven automated psychological experiments on non-consenting subjects would yield harm but who cares because chart go up
That famous startup guidebook taught tech bros to intentionally deceive people with A/B as a business model discovery strategy and now it infuses the ux of everything.
Read 6 tweets
1/7 2021 was the year of resilience, collective & victorious work for our digital rights network. As we launch the @EDRi Annual Report, join us in reflecting on last year’s biggest achievements. 🔎🧵👇🏿

edri.org/our-work/take-…
2/7 Last year we had to brace ourselves against numerous infringements against our #DigitalRights: predatory privacy policies, freedom of speech limitations, state surveillance & more. But these obstacles only made our network more powerful & united. 💪🏿🦸🏿

edri.org/our-work/take-…
3/7 In 🇩🇪, @edri member @freiheitsrechte impacted the new government coalition’s agreement, highlighting the value of encryption & strengthening the right to anonymity. In 🇮🇹, @HermesCenter facilitated a partial ban on facial recognition tech.

Find more: edri.org/our-work/take-… "Like many other Black women, I personally face racist
Read 7 tweets
ICYMI: FTC looks to modernize its guidance on preventing digital deception. As companies wrongly invoke the guide to justify deception, agency seeks public input on possible revisions around #DarkPatterns & other deceptive tactics: bit.ly/3aIT6gK #marketing #advertising
FTC staff is seeking comment on the following:
- use of sponsored and promoted advertising on social media;
- advertising embedded in games and virtual reality and microtargeted advertisements; /2
- ubiquitous use of dark patterns, manipulative user interface designs used on websites and mobile apps, and in digital advertising that pose unique risks to consumers;
- whether current guidance adequately addresses advertising on mobile devices; /3
Read 6 tweets
⚠️Today we are publishing a report on how the gaming industry exploits consumers using lootboxes

20 organizations in 18 European countries are joining us and call for better regulation of video games. 🎮

forbrukerradet.no/siste-nytt/loo…

#lootbox #gaming #darkpatterns #deceptivedesign
We have identified many problematic practices in an industry that is larger than Hollywood, and expected to grow massively in the years to come.

We need make gaming a safer & better experience for everyone.

Issues outlined below🧵
#lootboxes #lootbox #gaming Text: Dangers in gaming. Th...
Problem 1: Manipulative and deceptive practices are prevalent in digital environments, and are employed to make you spend more money on the game, and to keep you playing.

#lootboxes #deceptivedesign #darkpatterns #lootbox Image
Read 31 tweets
Glad to share a new behavioural study from @EU_Commission on #darkpatterns from the #consumerprotection perspective. Main takeaway: dark patterns are highly prevalent and unfairly distort the decisions of EU consumers. op.europa.eu/en/publication…
🧵A thread on the key findings: (1/4) Image
97% of the most popular websites and apps used by EU consumers deployed at least one #darkpattern. Most common ones include hiding information, creating false hierarchies in choice architectures, repeatedly making the same request and difficult cancellations. (2/4)
Behavioural experiments demonstrated that #darkpatterns impacted consumer decisions. Vulnerable consumers were more likely to make inconsistent choices (50.89%) than average consumers (47.24%). Older consumers and those with lower education levels were more impacted. (3/4)
Read 4 tweets
Now that we have the text of the #DMA published, let me point out a couple of outstanding provisions that have data protection implications & that show why this Regulation concerns all businesses & platform users, not only gatekeepers. Let's go 🧵 1/?
consilium.europa.eu/media/56086/st…
First of all, check out the list of Core Platform Services that may pull a business into the gatekeeper class (Art 2). Notably including web browsers, virtual assistants, & *online advertising services*, e.g. Exchanges, as long as they are provided by a business offering a CPS 2/
But this is not a thread about the threshold to become a gatekeeper (check Art 3). It just points out data protection implications of the #DMA. Of note, "consent", "profiling" in the #DMA are defined as in the #GDPR. Bonus: "non-personal" data & "data" are also defined 3/
Read 25 tweets
Chances are you’ve seen a #darkpattern online – a deceptive internet mechanism used to trap you into clicking, buying, or signing up for something you don’t want. I’m reintroducing a bill to prevent these with @SenatorFischer, @amyklobuchar, and @SenatorJohnThune.
So what exactly is a #darkpattern? They range from merely annoying to actively insidious. I’ll take you through it. First, ever had a confusing list of checkboxes that tried to con you into signing up for an email list? That’s one.
Or ever been ready to check out and then all of a sudden there’s a range of bogus hidden fees added? Again, a #darkpattern
Read 10 tweets
Telenor Pakistan is outright scamming its user base by auto subscribing to some 'Nazara Gaming' thing. They deduct 20rs or more each week even though you never subscribed to it. Telenor users keep an eye on your balance history!

#telenor #scam #nazara
Caught them stealing my balance because it always zeroed after some time even with no phone usage. Was suspicious since weeks, talked to their Live Chat agent who confirmed that they are deducting balance each week but would not tell me when it started!
#telenor #pakistan #scam
And #telenor agent said there is no possibility of any refunds. Telenor Pakistan is being run by thieves. I told this to my relative who uses Telenor as well and he found out he was being charged for Nazara gaming thing too without his consent. #telenor #pakistan #nazara #gaming
Read 63 tweets
UK Information Commissioner replacement candidate from New Zealand: “No more box ticking! Unlock the power of data!”

US Wild West: “Uncheck this tithing box and you are the enemy.”

#DarkPatterns #DataRights #GDPR
FYI: UK data protection enforcement was slightly above average while it lasted. bbc.com/news/technolog…
Just wait until UK hires an American ICO commish someday, always tapping from the anglosphere. I’m open for recruitment but I’m obviously insufficiently neoliberal for the job.
Read 4 tweets
What is a #darkpattern and why is @ftc looking into it? This thread illustrates an example of abusive unfairness that I’m sure you’ll find familiar. This disgraceful conduct is routinely celebrated by the growth hacker and digital marketing community as best practices.
Learn more about @ftc’s #darkpatterns upcoming workshop by reading @techpolicypress right here techpolicy.press/taking-action-…
#darkpatterns emerge in digital products when dashboards and split tests dominate the decisions at companies. Without incentives, privileges, and/or moral compass to question and challenge abusive design from within, #darkpatterns often expose the dark side of a business model.
Read 6 tweets
The @EU_Commission proposal for #AI Regulation is disappointing form a consumers perspective.
Here are SOME of the reasons why:
1) The scope is so narrow that effective obligations cover only a limited number of high-risk AI applications that affect consumers. All other systems that could inflict serious economic harm are treated negligently. Strikingly the proposal ignores most economic harms.
E.g. when AI-scoring systematically denies people access to services or excludes them from entire markets based on opaque personality analysis: standard.co.uk/tech/airbnb-so…
Read 8 tweets
Final version of the European Commission's proposal for an AI regulation:
digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/pro…

Eventually, the three main EU bodies (council, parliament and commission) will have to agree on a common version of the text #lobbyingwar #kickoff
"Many of the most harmful uses are not prohibited - like predictive policing, uses of AI for migration control, biometric categorisation"

Thread by EDRi's @sarahchander and @ellajakubowska1 addressing problems from a civil/digital rights perspective:
Most "systems that could inflict serious economic harm are treated negligently. Strikingly the proposal ignores most economic harms", and "the ban of #DarkPatterns ... has largely disappeared".

Problems from a consumer protection perspective:
Read 4 tweets
Today we kick off the 4th Interdisciplinary Summer Schoool on Privacy (Nijmegen) w marvelous participants &
@FusterGloria
@marioseventysix
@narseo
@mdieter
@NoraADraper
@graydesign
@amislove
@jusTechne
@moniekbuijzen & co.
@MLeiser
as instructors
#ISP2019
isp.cs.ru.nl
Second day continues with a lecture by Gloria González Fuster presenting “Dark Transparency Patterns”
“I will talk about law, and not ethics, law, but specifically European Union law; and about data protection law and not privacy.”
Read 50 tweets
Attention: If you are interested in #DarkPatterns (manipulative UX interfaces) or #Sludge (evil nudges), Jamie Luguri and I have an eye-opening new paper for you. (1/12)
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cf…
As best we can tell it’s the first publicly available research to test experimentally how effective dark patterns are at manipulating consumers into signing up for services they do not want. (2/12)
In a lot of ways this paper is the next shoe to drop after @arunshemathur, @random_walker, @ineffablicious, @jonathanmayer & co-authors’ fabulous study demonstrating the prevalence of Dark Patterns (3/12)
Read 12 tweets
Study on 'cookie banners' finds that in August 2018 less than 5 percent of the 5,000 most popular websites in the EU provided a visible 'choice' to *decline* extensive data sharing with third-party companies (based on analyzing a sample of 1,000 notices) #gdpr #enforcement #fail
What surprises me is that still 6-8% of users go through the trouble of deselecting *several* options despite the use of #darkpatterns. More than I expected.

Anyway, if opting into non-preticked 'categories' would be enforced, almost no one would opt in.
My take on this:

If almost no one would opt in, cookie banners would disappear.

Websites & other services may then try to take the 'sell your data or pay' route. They shouldn't be allowed to.

As a consequence, some of them may then stop providing services without payment, yes.
Read 4 tweets
UX needs a code of ethics. Do no harm. It’s a travesty what UXers will do for a paycheck. Otherwise
#DarkPatterns need to be regulated out of existence by consumer protection law as a deceptive practice. #DETOURact
New to #DarkPatterns? A student of mine, Sweksha Sinha, wrote a primer this past semester. Looks like @turbotax might be employing a sophisticated implementation of a “bait-and-switch” + “hidden-cost” dark pattern hybrid. mfadt.parsons.edu/darkdata/dark-…
Banning #DarkPatterns isn’t out of the realm of possibility as loot boxes and pay-to-win for games aimed at minors are mechanics on the chopping block. theverge.com/2019/5/23/1863…
Read 3 tweets
New Release: A digital edition of collected work from this semester. Featuring critical investigations on Surveillance, Privacy, and Power from @parsonsdesign @thenewschool students exploring Dark Architecture, Data Exhaust, and the Quantified Self.
mfadt.parsons.edu/darkdata
Part 1: “By nature, the architecture of visual and digital surveillance is a black-box.” On #DarkPatterns, FB’s privacy policy, true confessions of SalesForce workers, privacy’s gender bias, and potential abuse of #aadhaar biometric data.
From #DarkData
mfadt.parsons.edu/darkdata/darka…
Part 2. “If the 20th Century was the fossil fuel era, the 21st century is the era of data; data has replaced oil as the commodity that drives the economy.” On visualizing cookies, the digital afterlife, being extremely online, and surrendering to Google.
mfadt.parsons.edu/darkdata/digit…
Read 8 tweets
You might not have heard of a “dark pattern,” but chances are you’ve seen these annoying, manipulative designs trying to trick you into clicking, buying, or signing up for something you don’t want. Today I introduced the DETOUR Act with @SenatorFischer to do something about them.
These techniques range from mildly annoying to deeply insidious. Here are some examples of #DarkPatterns you may have seen online:
Ever run into a bunch of contradictory checkboxes that try to trick you into signing up for someone’s email list? That’s a dark pattern.
Read 16 tweets
Today in "Fucked Government Workflows" - adding a child to @SAHealth's Ambulance cover. It says I have to to make him covered.. well lets just go to the website... I hope there's no #DarkPatterns!
I know, I'll click the big fuckoff "Ambulance Cover" button that takes me to here saambulance.com.au/ProductsServic…
Nope, absolutely nothing on this page that tells me how to update my details, but it sure tells me I'm responsible for it and i get a *whole month* to tell them about a new kid. golly gee!

Maybe I'm looking in the wrong most obv place? How about "forms"? it's not on the FAQ page
Read 8 tweets

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