A to Z terminology guide · 39 canonical records
Dark-pattern terminology overlaps across research, policy and product teams. This glossary assigns each alias to one canonical learning record so “roach motel”, “bad default” or “friend spam” leads to a maintained definition rather than a thin duplicate page. The terms are design taxonomy, not automatic statements of illegality.
Deleting an account is unavailable, disguised as another outcome or burdened by unnecessary barriers. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Account deletion obstructionClaims about recent or current actions by other users are used to steer the decision, particularly where authenticity, timing or relevance is unsupported. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Activity messagesContent continues automatically or lacks meaningful stopping cues, reducing deliberate control over time and attention. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Automatic attention captureThe user selects a represented action or offer but receives a materially different outcome that favours the business. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Bait and switchDistinct products, services, permissions or purposes are grouped under one choice so the user cannot readily understand or select them separately. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Bundled optionsEnding an existing subscription, recurring service or permission is made difficult to find or complete through unnecessary steps or channel asymmetry. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Cancellation frictionThe volume or organisation of options or information makes meaningful comparison impractical and channels users toward a default or business-favoured path. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Choice or information overloadInformation needed to compare products, plans or consequences is presented in inconsistent, fragmented or unusable form. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Comparison preventionMaterial guidance is presented in a language or level of complexity that makes informed choice materially harder for the target user. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Complex or inaccessible languageOption labels use shame, guilt, fear or asymmetric emotional framing to move the user away from the outcome they would otherwise choose. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: ConfirmshamingThe service extracts contact information, sends or prepares unwanted invitations, or ties functionality to recruiting other people. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Contact harvesting and coerced referralsA visible countdown applies time pressure, particularly where it resets, is personalised without disclosure or has no corresponding consequence at zero. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Countdown timerAccess to support needed to resolve a purchase, account, charge or right is hidden or burdened by unnecessary loops and dead ends. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Customer-support obstructionA consumer-favourable route cannot reach its represented outcome and instead loops, stalls or loses progress. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Dead endA promotional or biased action is presented as ordinary content or as a different control, causing interaction under a mistaken understanding. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Disguised advertisement or actionA mandatory or foreseeable charge is omitted, obscured or revealed only after the user has invested effort in the transaction. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Drip pricing and hidden chargesParallel options are presented as if one were hierarchically primary, giving a business-favoured option materially greater visual or interactive prominence. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: False hierarchyA control does not let the user reasonably predict its material outcome before activation. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Feedforward ambiguityAccess or progression is conditioned on disclosing personal information that appears unnecessary, excessive or used for an insufficiently explained secondary purpose. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Forced disclosure or excessive data requestAccess is conditioned on accepting optional or separable data uses, communications or permissions as one bundled choice. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Forced or bundled consentThe user must create an account, or is led to believe one is required, to complete a goal that could plausibly be provided without it. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Forced registrationDesired functionality is practically conditioned on repetitive engagement or an additional payment not sufficiently clear at acquisition. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Gamified or paid access coercionInformation relevant to the decision is absent or presented so ineffectively that it is unlikely to inform the user at the decision point. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Hidden informationA transaction creates or continues recurring liability without effective, timely disclosure of the subscription, renewal and exit consequences. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Hidden subscription or forced continuityA claim of unusually high current demand is used to accelerate a decision without a clear or supportable basis. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: High-demand claimA proprietary currency makes the real monetary cost or remaining value unnecessarily hard to understand. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Intermediate currencyA textual deadline or temporary-reservation claim pressures action, particularly where the deadline renews or its stated consequence does not occur. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Limited-time or reservation claimA claim that few units remain applies purchase pressure, especially where inventory basis or persistence is unsupported. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Low-stock claimA comparison or prior price creates an inaccurate or insufficiently explained impression of savings. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Misleading reference pricingSilence, inactivity or an ineffective prior interaction is treated as authorisation for a paid or consequential transaction. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Negative option or unauthorised transactionA relevant alternative within the current decision is hidden, blocked or made materially harder than the business-favoured action. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Obstructed alternativeAggregate popularity or approval is presented to steer a choice where the metric, population, period or basis is unclear or unsupported. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Popularity claimsA business-favoured option with a plausible adverse consequence is active before a deliberate user choice. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Preselection and defaultsA more expensive or profitable option is made the practical focal choice through preselection, visual prominence or obscured lower-cost alternatives. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Pressured upsellingPrivacy controls are fragmented, inconsistently labelled or layered so that limiting collection or use is unnecessarily difficult. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Privacy mazeA business-favoured request repeatedly interrupts the user after decline, dismissal or non-response without a durable way to stop it. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Repeated promptingA paid or consequential item is added to a basket or transaction without a clear, deliberate and specific user choice. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Sneak into basketA named or attributed person's approval is used persuasively without sufficient authenticity, representativeness or relationship disclosure. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Testimonials or endorsementsA question or control uses confusing, reversed or leading semantics so the user's likely interpretation may not match the resulting choice. The label describes a recurring design mechanism; whether a particular implementation is harmful or unlawful depends on the complete journey, audience, evidence and rules within scope.
2 visual examples
Open definition and examples: Trick questionEvidence base