Datum Intelligence finds hidden charges, subscription traps and deceptive pricing practices affect 88 per cent of online buyers, while putting over Rs 55,000 crore in digital commerce spending at risk
Dark patterns — deceptive digital design practices that nudge consumers into unintended purchases and subscriptions — are costing Indian shoppers between Rs 25,000 crore and Rs 28,000 crore annually and putting more than Rs 55,000 crore in online spending at risk, according to a new report by consumer intelligence firm Datum Intelligence.
The report, Dark Patterns in India’s Online Marketplaces, found that nearly 88 per cent of the country’s 304 million online shoppers encounter tactics such as hidden charges, drip pricing, basket sneaking, subscription traps and false urgency prompts. Consumers affected by these practices lose an estimated ₹78-87 each month, while many are increasingly reducing spending or abandoning platforms they no longer trust.
“This is revenue that platforms have not yet lost, but will,” the report noted.
Deceptive Practices Persist
According to the report, deceptive practices remain widespread despite regulatory intervention. Around 73 per cent of the platforms analysed continue to deploy forced-action mechanisms that push users towards purchases or actions they may not otherwise choose. Meanwhile, 69 per cent use drip-pricing techniques that reveal additional charges only at the final stage of checkout.
More than half of the platforms surveyed were also found to employ bait-and-switch tactics, where the final product, service or pricing differs materially from what was initially advertised.
The study found that 63 per cent of online payment users reported encountering hidden fees or drip pricing during transactions, up from 52 per cent in 2024. Researchers said this indicates that existing regulatory measures have had limited success in curbing deceptive practices across ecommerce, banking, travel, ride-hailing, insurance, digital payments and lending platforms.
Government Tightens Oversight
The findings come shortly after the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) penalised edtech company PhysicsWallah and cybersecurity firm McAfee Software India for violating the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns last week. Introduced in 2023, the framework identified 13 dark-pattern practices as unfair trade practices. PhysicsWallah was fined Rs 5 lakh for basket sneaking, confirm shaming and forced data collection affecting over 21 lakh users, while McAfee was fined Rs 1 lakh.
The CCPA also fined quick-commerce platform Zepto Rs 7 lakh in December 2025 following a probe into consumer complaints. Earlier, BookMyShow was issued a notice for automatically adding charitable contributions to ticket purchases without explicit user consent.
“Such practices undermine trust in digital commerce; we aim to protect every shopper’s right to informed choice,” said Nidhi Khare, Chief Commissioner, CCPA last year.
In June 2025, the authority directed ecommerce platforms to conduct self-audits and submit compliance declarations under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. Addressing industry representatives, Union Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said, “Consumer interest is paramount. The consumers of today are vigilant, informed, and increasingly aware of their rights — they will not tolerate deceit. Companies think of new dark patterns every day for which we keep getting constant complaints and keep handling it on a daily basis,” he said earlier.
The report argues that enforcement remains uneven and points to Zepto’s fine shortly after it filed a self-declaration of compliance as evidence of weaknesses in the current self-certification framework.
However, the report argues that ambiguities in compliance standards and gaps in enforcement continue to undermine the effectiveness of the framework. According to the report, the episode exposed limitations in the current self-certification system and highlighted the need for stronger verification mechanisms.
Trust Gap Widens
The study was conducted during the first quarter of 2026 and surveyed more than 2,590 consumers across 50 cities. Researchers assessed 12 leading platforms across quick commerce, ecommerce and online travel, including BigBasket, Zepto, Swiggy Instamart, Blinkit, Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Nykaa, MakeMyTrip, EaseMyTrip, Ixigo and Cleartrip.
The report measured the prevalence of dark patterns, their financial impact and their effect on consumer trust, revealing a 92-point gap between the best- and worst-performing platforms.
Despite concerns around deceptive design practices, the report noted that online commerce adoption is expected to continue growing. This growth is likely to be supported by consumer trust in certain platforms, with Amazon emerging as the most trusted ecommerce marketplace among respondents.
In the ecommerce segment, the report stated, “Amazon stands alone on consumer trust where users naming it most-trusted (50 per cent). Flipkart, Myntra, and Nykaa all show net distrust; Flipkart’s gap (41 per cent least trusted vs 37 per cent most) is the narrowest but is driven by higher per-encounter financial extraction.”
According to Datum Intelligence, Amazon recorded the lowest B-Index score among ecommerce platforms at 6.7. The report also cited the company’s fraud-prevention, counterfeit-detection and consumer-awareness initiatives as examples of trust-focused measures.
For online travel platforms, the report observed, “Cleartrip ranks among the most harmful platforms, while MakeMyTrip is perceived as the safest, with a net positive trust deficit. In quick commerce, BigBasket records one of the highest severity scores.”
Nykaa, BigBasket and Cleartrip emerged among the weakest-performing platforms in their respective sectors on Datum’s dark-pattern index.
Consumers Know, Yet Still Fall For Them
The report highlighted what it described as an “awareness paradox” among Indian consumers. While 81 per cent of respondents said they were aware of dark patterns, 85 per cent reported that they had nevertheless been misled by them.
Researchers also identified the emergence of a “trust economy”, with 74 per cent of consumers indicating they would be willing to pay more for platforms that adopt transparent and fair design practices.
At the same time, users indicated plans to reduce spending on online platforms. The steepest decline is expected in the online travel segment, where spending could fall by as much as 15 per cent.
Addressing a virtual media briefing, Satish Meena, Founder, Datum Intelligence, said, “Dark patterns are not glitches. They are deliberate, engineered design choices that exploit consumer psychology […] The combined impact of direct financial loss and changing consumer behaviour shows that dark patterns are no longer just a consumer-protection concern. They are a broader macroeconomic challenge for the long-term sustainability of India’s digital commerce ecosystem.”
Regulatory Clarity Needed
The report further noted that uncertainty around definitions and enforcement standards remains a challenge for businesses. It argued that regulators need to draw clearer distinctions between deceptive manipulation and legitimate commercial persuasion to improve compliance and enforcement outcomes.
As a potential reference point, the report highlighted the European Union’s Digital Services Act, which establishes clearer boundaries between misleading interface design and permissible commercial communication.
The study also cited Zepto’s decision to roll back certain pricing and checkout practices following regulatory action in late 2025 as a rare example of corporate course correction. According to the report, the company redesigned its checkout flow after Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Aadit Palicha publicly acknowledged that the practices had been a mistake.
The findings suggest that dark patterns have evolved beyond a consumer-protection issue and now represent a broader challenge to the sustainability and long-term growth of India’s digital commerce ecosystem.
