Centre directs e-commerce platforms to audit, eliminate ‘dark patterns’
New Delhi: The Ministry of Consumer Affairs has issued a fresh advisory directing all e-commerce platforms to conduct internal audits and eliminate “dark patterns”—design practices that mislead or manipulate consumers into unintended actions.
According to the advisory issued on Saturday, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has mandated that platforms carry out these audits within three months to identify and remove unfair interface features that compromise consumer autonomy.
“All e-commerce platforms have been advised to conduct self-audits to identify dark patterns, within 3 months of the issue of the advisory, and take necessary steps to ensure that their platforms are free from such dark patterns,” the ministry stated.
Companies have also been encouraged to submit self-declarations affirming that their websites are free of such deceptive design features. These declarations are aimed at enhancing consumer trust in the digital marketplace.
The CCPA disclosed that it has already served notices to certain platforms for violating dark pattern norms, though it did not disclose names.
Dark patterns encompass manipulative techniques like hidden costs at checkout, urgency cues, confirm shaming, misleading ads, and subscription traps—practices deemed exploitative and contrary to fair consumer conduct.
To ensure effective implementation, the Centre has constituted a Joint Working Group comprising officials from key ministries, regulatory bodies, consumer rights organisations, and national law universities. This group will monitor compliance, suggest enforcement measures, and plan awareness initiatives.
The advisory builds on the government’s 2023 guidelines that formally recognised 13 types of dark patterns, including basket sneaking, forced actions, bait-and-switch tactics, and drip pricing.
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Indian startup's 'Drishti' satellite launched aboard SpaceX rocket
New Delhi (PTI): Bengaluru-based space start-up GalaxEye's Mission Drishti satellite was launched on Sunday aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket from California.
Mission Drishti is the world's first OptoSAR satellite, integrating electro-optical (EO) and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors into a single operational platform, according to the company.
While EO sensors capture high-resolution images during sunlight and clear skies, SAR sensors provide all-weather and all-time images, using radar pulses.
In a statement, Suyash Singh, founder and CEO of GalaxEye, said, "With the satellite (Mission Drishti) now successfully in orbit, our immediate focus is on completing its commissioning. As we move through this phase, we are already witnessing strong global interest in the differentiated datasets enabled by our OptoSAR payload."
The satellite will help address long-standing limitations of conventional systems and enable more reliable and consistent data acquisition across diverse environmental conditions, the company said.
As a dual-use Earth observation satellite, the mission will support use cases across defence, agriculture, disaster management, maritime monitoring, and infrastructure planning.
The satellite is also expected to complement India's broader initiatives, including the 29 active Earth Observation satellites outlined in ISRO's recent annual report.
The launch came after five years of indigenous research and development, and extensive environmental testing and performance validation of the Mission Drishti.
In a statement, Lt Gen AK Bhatt (Retd), director general of Indian Space Association (ISpA), said, "GalaxEye has achieved what only a few global players have, which is seamlessly combining optical and SAR capabilities on a single platform to enable persistent, all-weather intelligence."
What stands out is not just the technology, but its broader impact on how downstream applications will increasingly define value in the space economy, particularly in Earth observation, where timely, decision-grade insights are critical," he added.
ISpA is the premier industry association of space and satellite companies in the country.
Union Minister Jitendra Singh also took note of the Mission Drishti launch, saying the development marked a significant milestone in India's space journey.
In a post on X, the minister said, "The successful launch of the world's first OptoSAR satellite, and the largest privately-built satellite in the country, reflects the immense potential of our young innovators driving nation-building."
GalaxEye aims to scale up Mission Drishti to a constellation of 10 satellites by 2030, developing a robust and sovereign Earth observation infrastructure for India.
