Dark patterns

Quick definition

A dark pattern is a deceptive or manipulative interface design choice that steers a person’s purchase, subscription or sharing of personal data through hidden information, preselected options, ambiguous buttons or barriers to refusal, undermining their ability to make an informed decision.

French equivalent: interfaces trompeuses or interfaces truquées. Another English name is deceptive design patterns. UK designer Harry Brignull coined the term in 2010.

Why dark patterns matter for influencer marketing

Dark patterns are common on the pages creators send their audiences to. In 2023, the European Commission found them on 148 of the 399 online shops it checked, or 37%. In 2024, the ICPEN international network found at least one on 76% of 642 subscription websites and apps. In social commerce, a creator’s video leads straight to pages like these.

A creator’s recommendation lends its credibility to the landing page. If an influencer tracking link opens a basket that adds a paid extra, the brand loses the buyer’s trust and the creator loses their audience’s. Penalties are heavy: in September 2025, Amazon agreed to pay the US FTC $2.5 billion over Prime sign-ups obtained through misleading flows and a deliberately complicated cancellation process.

How it works in a campaign

A dark pattern changes what people see and can do at the moment they decide: the most profitable option is pushed forward, inconvenient information is hidden and refusing takes more steps than accepting. In an influencer campaign, it rarely sits in the video itself but in the journey after the click: product page, basket, payment, cookie banner and cancellation. Disguised advertising, close to ghost advertising, follows the same logic.

Before launch, clarify:

• The real dates and stock behind the offer, before approving any urgency claim from the creator.
• The final destination of the call to action, opened on mobile after redirects, all the way to payment.
• The total price, paid extras and recurring charges, visible before the customer commits.
• The refusal path, cookie choices and cancellation, tested with dated screenshots.
• Who owns each fix, with the paid partnership disclosure checked separately in the content.

KPIs and signals to watch

• Refund and complaint rate on orders from creator links, compared with other channels.
• Cancellations within 30 days for subscriptions started with a creator code or link.
• Gap between the price stated in the content and the price paid at checkout.
• Follower comments and messages reporting an unexpected price, extra or subscription.
• Campaign journeys tested before launch and time taken to fix the issues found.

Common mistakes

• Letting a creator promote an offer that “ends tonight” and then renewing it every week.
• Approving the video and caption without ever testing the checkout or cancellation.
• Preselecting insurance, a warranty or a paid extra in the promo-code journey.
• Making cancellation longer than sign-up, which breaks France’s three-click rule.
• Judging the campaign on immediate conversions while ignoring refunds and negative comments.

Practical perspective

At TANKE, we treat the landing page as part of the content: a creator should never recommend a journey they have not seen. Before anything goes live, the brand and the creator follow the final link on mobile, through payment and through cancellation. A conversion won with a preselected box is paid back later in refunds, negative comments and lost trust for the creator.

FAQ

How do dark patterns work?

Dark patterns exploit mental shortcuts: people skim, keep default settings and give up when they hit an obstacle. The interface therefore puts the most profitable option first, hides inconvenient information or makes refusing take longer than accepting. The result is a purchase, a subscription or a consent to tracking that the person would not have given if the choice had been presented clearly.

What are common examples of dark patterns?

Common examples of dark patterns include fake countdown timers, invented low-stock warnings, items added to the basket by default, preselected boxes, fees revealed on the final screen and cancellation hidden behind several pages. Confirmshaming is another: in its 2025 settlement, the FTC barred Amazon from using a decline button that read “No, I don’t want Free Shipping”.

What is the difference between dark patterns and persuasion?

A dark pattern deceives or pressures, while commercial persuasion presents a true offer and lets the person decide. A genuinely time-limited promotion, an accurate stock message or a prominent buy button are legitimate. The line is crossed when urgency is false, when an option is chosen on the customer’s behalf, or when refusing takes more effort than accepting.

Are dark patterns illegal in France and the EU?

In France, dark patterns are sanctioned as misleading or aggressive commercial practices under articles L121-1 and following of the Consumer Code. Since 1 June 2023, cancelling a subscription online must take three clicks (article L215-1-1). Since February 2024, article 25 of the EU Digital Services Act also bans online platforms from designing interfaces that deceive or manipulate their users.

Sources

DGCCRF: online shopping traps: the mechanisms the French consumer regulator has documented and how they are assessed legally (in French).

European Commission: online shop sweep (2023): 148 of 399 sites used at least one dark pattern (press release IP/23/418).

ICPEN: subscription services sweep (2024): 76% of 642 websites and apps reviewed used at least one dark pattern.

FTC: $2.5 billion settlement with Amazon (2025): Prime enrolment and cancellation practices.

TANKE, an influencer marketing agency in Paris, writes this glossary from the campaigns it runs for brands since 2014. Talk to us about your project.