An Average of 5.6 Types of Dark Commercial Patterns Used by Major Online Shopping Malls

-Need for screen layout (interfaces) to be designed and operated to allow consumers tomake decisions freely-

Online Dark Commercial Patterns* (so-called DCPs, and thereby hereinafter “the DCPs”) employed by e-commerce businesses using big tech show broad spectrum from “crystal-clear deceptive commercial patterns” to “normative marketing activities”, and many of these practices are cleverly implemented.

Accordingly, the Korea Consumer Agency (KCA) conducted a survey on the actual use of DCPs across the 76 interfaces, including websites and mobile apps, of 38 domestic online shopping malls, based on the ‘Guidelines on Self-Management Online DCPs’ announced by the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC). The survey showed that the total number of confirmed DCPs* was 429, indicating an average of 5.6 types of DCPs being used.