With the advent of digital markets, Dark Patterns which are likely to undermine trust of the consumer trust in digital platforms. Dark Patterns exploit the cognitive biases to steer users toward choices favouring the platform over the consumer. The OECD's 2022 report identifies recurring tactics: false urgency countdowns, pre-selected add-ons, hidden fees disclosed only at checkout, confirm-shaming, and "roach motel" subscriptions that are easy to enter but deliberately hard to exit.
Consumer trust is the expectation that a seller will act honestly and deliver as represented, without the buyer needing to verify every claim. In digital markets, where consumers cannot physically inspect goods or counterparties, trust substitutes for that missing verification; it is what enables the consumer to enter card details, accept a subscription, or return to a platform. Trust is therefore not incidental to e-commerce, it is the transactional base on which growth, repeat custom, and cross-border digital trade depends.
Dark Patterns however, have the potential to erode this trust directly. Once a consumer discovers they were nudged into an unwanted charge or an inescapable subscription, the perceived fairness of the transaction collapses, producing frustration, regret, and declining confidence not only in that seller but in online commerce generally. The 2024 OECD-ICPEN review found over 76% of websites examined used at least one dark pattern, with 67% using multiple tactics , a clear evidence of how pervasive these designs have become.
Africa's exposure is rising alongside its digital growth with various countries e-commerce revenue projected to reach $112 billion by 2029, driven by a surge in mobile money and expanding digital markets. As AfCFTA advances digital trade, member states should codify dark patterns as unfair practices and harmonise disclosure standards, before eroded trust undermines the continent's digital trade ambitions.
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