Bengaluru: Zepto, PhysicsWallah, FirstCry and PharmEasy are among seven companies fined by the consumer protection regulator for deploying “dark patterns”—online design practices that can influence users to make unintended purchases or payments.The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has imposed penalties totalling Rs 20 lakh on the companies for using such practices, the government said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. McAfee, SpiceJet and coaching platform Anuj Jindal were also fined.Dark patterns are features on apps and websites designed to steer consumers towards choices they may not otherwise make. These include adding items to a shopping cart without consent, revealing charges only at checkout, or making it difficult for users to reject an offer.The largest penalty, of Rs 7 lakh, was imposed on quick-commerce platform Zepto. The CCPA said the company initially displayed a lower price to attract consumers but added a handling charge and Zepto Pass membership fee at checkout. The regulator classified these as drip pricing and basket sneaking.According to the government, Zepto challenged the order before the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission and deposited the penalty amount. The company has since discontinued the practices.PhysicsWallah was fined Rs 5 lakh for automatically pre-selecting a Rs 10 donation to its foundation during checkout. The regulator said the platform displayed emotionally persuasive messages to nudge users into retaining the donation. It also found that courses advertised as free required users to share personal information before gaining access.FirstCry was fined Rs 2 lakh for displaying prices as inclusive of taxes but adding GST at checkout. PharmEasy was fined Rs 1 lakh for automatically adding its Plus membership to customers’ carts. Both companies have deposited the penalties and discontinued the practices, the government said.McAfee was fined Rs 1 lakh after its subscription renewal interface presented users with options such as “Accept Risk” or “Renew Now”, without offering a neutral way to decline. The company subsequently added a “Skip” option.SpiceJet was fined Rs 1 lakh for using pre-ticked boxes to enrol users into its loyalty programme and obtain consent for promotional communications. The airline attributed the issue to a technical error and said it had taken steps to rectify it.Coaching platform Anuj Jindal was fined Rs 3 lakh for allegedly using a misleading 24-hour countdown timer to create a false sense of urgency.The regulator also intervened in cases involving IndiGo and BookMyShow, though the government did not mention any penalties against them. IndiGo changed its seat-selection prompt from “No, I will take risk” to “No, I will not add to the trip”, while BookMyShow stopped automatically selecting a Re 1 contribution to its BookASmile initiative.
