According to the EU’s preliminary findings, these apps violate new social media regulations under the bloc’s Digital Services Act (DSA).
What are dark patterns?
Dark patterns are user interface (UI) designs designed to trick users into taking actions they would not normally take.
Coined by Harry Brignull, founder of Deceptive Patterns, this term describes user interface elements that mislead users into making decisions that benefit the service provider, often at the expense of the user. These patterns exploit cognitive biases and lack of user attention to steer users down a path they may later regret.
Dark mold examples
According to the news in Forbes, examples of dark patterns can be given as follows:
False famine: Users are pressured to move quickly by falsely making it seem like what they are looking at is almost sold out.
Hidden ads: Tricking users into clicking on ads that appear to be navigational elements.
Roach Motel: Making it easy to enter a situation (for example, signing up for a service) but harder to exit (for example, canceling a subscription).
The EU’s claims against X
The European Commission’s investigation under the DSA revealed that X’s blue checkmarks, offered in exchange for a monthly fee, were a type of dark pattern. For much of Twitter’s history, these checkmarks were a sign of verification for celebrities, politicians, and other influential accounts. They were an indication that a person’s identity had been verified.
Other social networks, such as LinkedIn, continue to use the “verified” badge to indicate that they have verified the member’s identity.
In contrast, under Elon Musk’s ownership, any X user could get a blue check mark for $8 a month. This change led to confusion and deception, as users could no longer trust the blue check mark as a sign of authenticity and trustworthiness.
According to the EU, this practice “negatively impacts users’ ability to freely and consciously decide on the authenticity of the accounts and content they interact with.”
The EU’s findings suggest that the current system of blue ticks on the X could mislead users into believing that certain accounts are more trustworthy or real than they actually are. The claims also cover X’s compliance with advertising transparency rules.
The Digital Services Act represents a significant step in this direction, setting clear rules for transparency and accountability. The EU has been scrutinising X for allegedly using shady patterns, but the problem is widespread across many digital platforms.
