They designed it
to trick you.
Dark Wiki is the open investigative encyclopedia cataloguing every manipulative design pattern in digital products — with evidence, severity ratings, and the legal frameworks catching up.
Catalogued
Categories
Since 2022
Most Documented Patterns
Real examples. Real harm. Real consequences.
Confirmshaming
Guilt-tripping language on opt-out buttons to manipulate users into accepting. "No thanks, I don't want to save money."
Read Full Analysis →Roach Motel
Easy to sign up, impossible to cancel. Hidden cancellation flows, phone-only cancellation, excessive retention steps.
Read Full Analysis →Hidden Costs
Concealing fees, taxes, or surcharges until the final checkout step when users are psychologically committed to purchasing.
Read Full Analysis →Forced Continuity
Silently charging users after a free trial ends without clear notification. Auto-renewal with buried cancellation options.
Read Full Analysis →Misdirection
Drawing attention to one element to distract from another. Bright "Accept All" vs. tiny "Manage Preferences" on cookie banners.
Read Full Analysis →Privacy Zuckering
Confusing privacy settings that trick users into sharing more data than intended. Named after Facebook's repeated privacy scandals.
Read Full Analysis →Bait and Switch
Advertising one thing, then swapping it for another after the user has committed. From free-to-paid upgrades to product substitutions.
Read Full Analysis →Sneak Into Basket
Silently adding items to the user's cart during checkout — insurance, warranties, accessories they never selected.
Read Full Analysis →Disguised Ads
Advertisements styled to look like content, navigation, or download buttons, tricking users into clicking ads.
Read Full Analysis →Trick Questions
Using double negatives and confusing language in forms so users accidentally opt into things they meant to decline.
Read Full Analysis →Friend Spam
Accessing a user's contacts and sending messages on their behalf without clear consent. LinkedIn paid $13M for this.
Read Full Analysis →Fake Urgency
Countdown timers that reset, fake stock warnings, and artificial time pressure to rush purchasing decisions.
Read Full Analysis →Fake Social Proof
Fabricated reviews, inflated ratings, manufactured activity notifications. A $152B fake review economy.
Read Full Analysis →Nagging
Persistent, repeated prompts that interrupt user workflow to push upgrades, ratings, or notification permissions.
Read Full Analysis →Obstruction
Making cancellation, data deletion, or account downgrade deliberately unreasonably difficult.
Read Full Analysis →Preselection
Pre-checking radio buttons and toggles that favor the company. 90% of users accept defaults — companies know this.
Read Full Analysis →Price Comparison Prevention
Structuring pricing to make it impossible to compare plans on equal terms. Feature fragmentation and unit pricing tricks.
Read Full Analysis →Dark Defaults
Settings configured from day one to maximize data collection and sharing. Fewer than 5% of users ever change defaults.
Read Full Analysis →Hard to Cancel
The most complained-about dark pattern. Phone calls, retention gauntlets, and $1.8B in unwanted annual charges.
Read Full Analysis →Drip Pricing
Revealing the true cost incrementally through checkout. Ticketmaster, hotel resort fees, and the FTC's Junk Fees Rule.
Read Full Analysis →Gamification Pressure
Streaks, loss aversion, loot boxes using variable rewards to create compulsive engagement against user wellbeing.
Read Full Analysis →Interface Interference
Asymmetric button styling, visual hierarchy manipulation, and deceptive layouts that guide users toward unwanted choices.
Read Full Analysis →Attention Depletion
Infinite scrolls, autoplay, algorithmic feeds designed to hijack attention. 200,000 human lifetimes wasted per day.
Read Full Analysis →Pattern Categories
Dark patterns grouped by the type of manipulation they employ.
Emotional Manipulation
Guilt, shame, urgency, and fear used to override rational decision-making.
5 patternsObstruction
Making unwanted actions difficult — hidden cancellation, multi-step opt-outs.
4 patternsSneaking
Hiding information, adding items to cart, or auto-enrolling without consent.
5 patternsVisual Interference
Misdirection, pre-selection, and design tricks that guide users toward a preferred choice.
4 patternsUrgency & Scarcity
Fake countdown timers, "only 2 left!" warnings, and artificial pressure tactics.
3 patternsData Exploitation
Confusing privacy controls that expose more user data than intended.
3 patternsForced Action
Requiring unrelated actions to complete a task — forced registration, social sharing gates.
3 patternsSeverity Index
How we rate the impact and harm of each dark pattern.
Critical 9-10
Financial harm, data exploitation, or illegal under EU/FTC regulations. Causes measurable user damage. Companies fined for these patterns.
High 7-8
Significant manipulation that most users cannot detect. Regulatory scrutiny increasing. Often involves financial or privacy consequences.
Medium 5-6
Manipulative but detectable by aware users. Degrades trust and user experience. Common in e-commerce and SaaS onboarding.
Low 3-4
Mild nudging that borders on legitimate persuasion. May cross ethical lines depending on context and user vulnerability.
Advisory 1-2
Grey area practices. Legitimate marketing techniques that could become dark patterns if applied aggressively.
Need a Dark Pattern Audit?
Our UX forensics team at Garnet Grid Consulting analyzes your product (or your competitor's) for deceptive design patterns. We deliver a full severity-scored report with remediation recommendations and compliance guidance for GDPR, DSA, and FTC regulations.
- Full-product UX forensic analysis
- Severity-scored pattern report
- GDPR/DSA/FTC compliance check
- Remediation roadmap & competitor benchmarking
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a dark pattern?
A dark pattern is a user interface design technique that manipulates users into taking actions they didn't intend. The term was coined by UX researcher Harry Brignull in 2010. Dark patterns exploit cognitive biases and psychological vulnerabilities to benefit the company at the user's expense.
Are dark patterns illegal?
Increasingly, yes. The EU's Digital Services Act (DSA) explicitly bans dark patterns. The FTC has taken enforcement action against companies like Epic Games ($520M fine) and Amazon for dark pattern practices. California's CPRA and Colorado's CPA include dark pattern provisions. The legal landscape is rapidly evolving.
How do I identify dark patterns in my own product?
Start with a UX audit focused on user consent flows, cancellation processes, pricing transparency, and opt-in/opt-out defaults. Ask: "Would a reasonable user understand what's happening?" If the answer is uncertain, it may be a dark pattern. Our professional audit service provides comprehensive analysis.
Who created Dark Wiki?
Dark Wiki is an open educational resource maintained by Garnet Grid Consulting LLC, a technology consulting firm specializing in AI, UX, and digital infrastructure. Our mission is to make deceptive design practices visible and accountable.