Request for comments regarding topics to be discussed at Dark Patterns workshop

Post by Bellamy » Mon, May 03, 2021, 6:13 AM UTC

bogwog wrote: post #152

A common one is fake consent popups for system notifications. Websites need to ask for consent before sending system notifications via the Notifications API. If a user declines, that website is blocked from asking again (for obvious reasons) But many websites cheat this by showing a fake consent popup designed to mimic what the browser would show. If a user clicks "Decline" on the fake popup, the website won't show t…

Post by mrtksn » Mon, May 03, 2021, 6:17 AM UTC

drexlspivey wrote: post #378

bogwog wrote: post #152

A common one is fake consent popups for system notifications. Websites need to ask for consent before sending system notifications via the Notifications API. If a user declines, that website is blocked from asking again (for obvious reasons) But many websites cheat this by showing a fake consent popup designed to mimic what the browser would show. If a user clicks "Decline" on the fake popup, the website won't show t…

A similar one is asking you to rate the app via the native modal (which does nothing) and if you rate with 5 stars they redirect you to the app store to vote there (where it counts). If you rate them with 1-3 stars they prompt you to leave feedback instead.

Post by [deleted] » Mon, May 03, 2021, 6:33 AM UTC

chiefofgxbxl wrote: post #8

Windows 10 does not respect the "default browser" setting when opening web-based content through apps. For example, clicking on "Help" links or search results from the start menu always opens in Edge. This seems far worse than their IE-bundling issue back in the day... at least users have a few web browsers to choose from, but what good is that when user preference is overridden?

Post by eightails » Mon, May 03, 2021, 6:44 AM UTC

Mixtape wrote: post #71

lima wrote: post #51

Slack has a fun dark pattern - they purposefully remove functionality from their web app to make you install their native app. The web app has a workspace switcher sidebar, but it only appears on ChromeOS, where you can't install the native client. https://webapps.stackexchange.com/questions/144258/slacks-we...

Reddit is just as guilty of this. If you want to see all the comments on a thread on their mobile site, you're pushed to install their official app and presumably create an account when doing so. As far as I can tell, the best workaround is to use the desktop site.

Post by max_ » Mon, May 03, 2021, 6:50 AM UTC

inetknght wrote: post #392

max_ wrote: post #218

The failure is is not regulators that have failed to "regulate". It is designers of the tech (browsers, Operating systems) that have failed to come up with systems that are difficult for devs to abuse.

It is absolutely a failure of regulators to regulate. It's not only a failure of regulators. Designers of the tech are doing it because it's legal. It's legal because regulators aren't enforcing laws in ways conducive to modern tech.