Dark patterns are essentially user experience (UX) tricks that websites and apps use to discourage certain actions, deliberately obscure information, or mislead users.
The term was first coined in 2010 by UX specialist Harry Brignull, who went on to launch DarkPatterns.Org to name and shame perpetrators, but the practice has been going on much longer than that.
For example, burying unpopular stipulations inside lengthy terms of service agreements that few — if any — consumers ever read is a dark pattern that is as old or older as the internet itself.
The FTC, the California Consumer Protection Act (CCPA), and the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) all require clear and obvious consent, albeit in different contexts and situations. In most cases, dark patterns are explicitly in violation of these regulations and certainly go against the spirit of the laws.