Dark patterns: Fair play or a tool of mass deception?

The recent controversy over Zepto’s differential pricing and lack of transparency trains the spotlight on the deceptions and trickery that digital companies resort to in the name of innovative business practices.

This story could be called a tale of two phones. It started when my wife and I started ordering groceries for the week ahead. We’d had a busy morning and the rest of the day didn’t look any better. “Hey, muesli is Rs 226,” she called out from the living room. “What? It’s Rs 215 on mine,” I replied from the kitchen. And before I knew it, I was down the rabbit hole.

What started as a casual observation soon turned into a pattern when I began checking the prices of the same items on both phones. I realized there …

Author

Pradip K. Saha

Pradip is a co-founder at The Morning Context and leads our newsletters vertical. He has previously worked at The Ken as a staff writer, at Mint as an assistant features editor and the Deccan Chronicle as a copy editor. He works with a slew of expert newsletter writers across subjects and domains. His own writing spans the gig economy, farmers caught in the crossfire of technology, global warming and parents trapped in the edtech wave. Some of his best stories have come at the intersection of technology and human endeavour.

Editor, Newsletters

pradip@mailtmc.com

Delhi

Author

Harveen Ahluwalia

Harveen is a co-founder at The Morning Context, and leads our Internet coverage. She has previously worked as a media, consumer and tech reporter at The Ken and Mint. At The Morning Context, she writes on startups, venture capital, consumer and media businesses across India and the Middle East—from e-commerce to healthtech to streaming.

Editor, Internet

harveen@mailtmc.com

Dubai