Digital Abuse: How Dark Patterns Manipulate Our Lives

The digital economy in Russia and abroad is of growing interest to lawmakers, especially in the context of the use of so-called ‘dark patterns’ — manipulative interface solutions that influence user behavior. BigTech companies consolidate their dominant position in the market by implementing innovative practices, many of which cannot be recognized as bona fide. The most prominent example of the implementation of user retention mechanisms through embedded features is the Tik Tok platform (Dou Yin). The Tik Tok phenomenon is still being studied by experts, but one of the clues is the unique recommendation feed that dynamically adjusts to the user’s interests and is endless, creating the so-called “immersion effect”.