Ever heard of “dark patterns”? The term was coined – as you can see from the photo above – by Harry Brignull and is used to describe ‘naughty things’ companies do to try and trick you into doing something you don’t necessarily want to.
As companies try ever harder to make money and get more out of people, these dark patterns are becoming ever more common.
So where’s the link to charity, I hear you cry? Well, last night I spotted this tweet:
Interesting dark pattern from @TheChilliPickle restaurant, sneaking a £1 charity donation onto the bill without asking #darkpattern pic.twitter.com/iNH9Pky81i
— Andy Budd (@andybudd) October 13, 2016
The crux of the issue is that a £1 discretionary donation was added to the final bill by default, thus making it less likely that it would be removed.
The restaurant concerned – a very good Indian one in Brighton – was very contrite, but rightly pointed out that the £1 charity discretion was clearly advertised and would have been happily removed. Continue reading “Charity vs ethics: you decide”
