The Indian government is losing patience with consumer-tech platforms using dark patterns or manipulative design tricks.

In late May 2024, Consumer Affairs Minister, Pralhad Joshi, gathered the country’s biggest internet companies, Amazon, Google, Zomato, Ola Electric, etc to give them an ultimatum: clean up your user interfaces by September 5 or face the consequences.

From hidden fees on Amazon to guilt-inducing pop-ups on Indigo, these tactics push users into spending more money, sharing more data, or giving up more control, often without realising it.

And they’re deeply baked into how these companies grow, making them hard to remove without hurting the bottom line.

Tune in.

**This episode was first published on 11 August, 2025

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