The ministry has identified 13 dark patters in guidelines issued on 30 November 2023, to prevent and regulate unfair trade practices
As deceptive design techniques that mislead or trick users into unintended actions on ecommerce and digital platforms continue to rise, Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said that the Centre is actively working on the issue.
While addressing an event organised by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), Joshi noted that his ministry is proactively addressing consumer complaints about innovative dark patterns. The ministry has identified 13 dark patters in guidelines issued on 30 November 2023.
“At times, I get an email about a new dark pattern. Daily, a new dark pattern keeps popping up and we keep on handling them. The companies keep bringing new techniques in dark pattern but our department is very active,” Joshi highlighted.
The Department of Consumer Affairs celebrated National Consumer Day 2025, with a strong focus on accelerating consumer justice delivery through digital reforms, data-driven grievance redressal, and strengthened regulatory enforcement. As of December 2025, over 1.4 lakh cases were disposed of during the year, with over 90,000 hearings conducted through video conferencing, demonstrating the growing impact of technology-enabled consumer justice, the minister added.
“The National Consumer Helpline has emerged as a strong pre-litigation grievance redressal mechanism, facilitating refunds of Rs 42.6 crore across 30 sectors by resolving over 63,800 refund-related grievances between April and December 2025. To safeguard consumers against unfair trade practices, the Central Consumer Protection Authority has issued over 450 class action notices and imposed penalties exceeding Rs 2.13 crore, including action against misleading advertisements and dark patterns in digital markets,” Joshi emphasised.
Joshi also unveiled a series of high-impact consumer-centric digital, regulatory and awareness initiatives, reinforcing the government’s goal of a transparent, technology-enabled and responsive consumer protection ecosystem.
