California Consumer Privacy Act Enforcement Agency fines PhysicsWallah and McAfee for Dark Pattern practices

CCPA Penalizes PhysicsWallah and McAfee for Deploying Deceptive Interface Designs

The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has taken action against edtech firm PhysicsWallah and cybersecurity company McAfee Software India for employing "dark patterns," a type of user interface design that manipulates users into taking unintended actions.

PhysicsWallah has been issued a fine of Rs 5 lakh, while McAfee has been handed a penalty of Rs 1 lakh. Both companies have been directed to remove such practices from their platforms immediately. The regulator emphasized that these companies must adhere to the guidelines and rules outlined by the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, and the Dark Patterns Guidelines, 2023.

Dark Patterns and Consumer Protection

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Dark patterns are user interface design tricks that nudge or coerce consumers into making unintended purchases, signing up for subscriptions, or surrendering personal data. The CCPA notified the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns in November 2023, identifying 13 such practices as unfair trade. The authority has been actively working to prevent and regulate these practices, as seen in its advisory issued on June 5, which asked e-commerce platforms to conduct self-audits and purge such practices.

The PhysicsWallah Case

CCPA took suo motu cognizance of the edtech platform's practices and found three violations. During checkout, a Rs 10 donation to the PW Foundation was automatically added to the payable amount without explicit consumer consent. Users were then shown emotionally charged messages about children's education, healthcare, and marriages to discourage them from removing the donation. Additionally, courses advertised as "free" required users to first share their mobile number and email address. The regulator noted that course content remained identical across accounts, suggesting mandatory data collection served no functional purpose. Given that a significant portion of PhysicsWallah's user base comprises students, including minors, CCPA flagged heightened consumer protection concerns.

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The McAfee Case

CCPA's examination of McAfee's subscription renewal interface found that users were presented with two options -- "Renew Now" and "Accept Risk" -- with no neutral alternative. The framing effectively cast non-renewal as a reckless, security-threatening choice, a claim the company could neither justify nor guarantee. The renewal button also received greater visual prominence, further steering users toward continued subscriptions.

CCPA's Response

CCPA, headed by Chief Commissioner Nidhi Khare and Commissioner Anupam Mishra, has taken a stern stance against companies deploying dark patterns. The authority stated, "Consumer consent must always be explicit, informed and free from manipulative design practices." The CCPA has issued orders under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, and the Dark Patterns Guidelines, 2023.