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Identifying and Responding to Privacy Dark Patterns

Organization

The University of Western Ontario

Published

2024

Project Leaders

Jacquelyn Burkell

Dominique Kelly

Summary

This project aimed to minimize the impact of privacy dark patterns on Canadian youth. Privacy dark patterns are interface design strategies intended to “nudge” users to reveal personal information, either directly, or by enabling (or failing to disable) privacy-invasive platform or profile settings. Teens are especially vulnerable to the effects of dark patterns on privacy choices, both as avid users of the Internet and social media and because of their awareness levels of commercial surveillance online.

The researchers conducted four focus groups with 38 Canadian teens (aged 13-17) to examine their experience with, awareness of, and responses to privacy dark patterns on social media. Participants demonstrated a low level of awareness of how interface design could impact their privacy behaviour before participating in the research. When prompted to focus on privacy-undermining aspects of social media sites, however, teens could identify a wide range of privacy dark patterns and strategies for resistance. The researchers also reviewed research assessing users’ perceptions of and responses to privacy dark patterns and examined approaches to privacy dark pattern regulation in Canada, the United States, and the European Union. This research informed the development of educational materials in collaboration with MediaSmarts that teach teens how to resist privacy dark patterns on social media.

Project deliverables are available in the following language(s):

MediaSmarts Lesson Plans (English):

MediaSmarts Lesson Plans (French):

OPC Funded Project

This project received funding support through the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s Contributions Program. The opinions expressed in the summary and report(s) are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Summaries have been provided by the project authors. Please note that the projects appear in their language of origin.

Contact Information

Jacquelyn Burkell
Western Research, Room 5150 SSB
The University of Western Ontario
1393 Western Road
London, Ontario
N6G 1G9
Telephone: (519) 661-2111 ext. 88895
Email: jburkell@uwo.ca

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