No more 'silence means consent': Korea cracks down on subscription dark patterns

The Korea Fair Trade Commission released guidelines Tuesday aimed at preventing dark patterns in online interfaces, setting out rules for how businesses must obtain consumer consent and display prices.

Dark patterns are design tactics used in online interfaces that exploit consumer inattention or confusion to push unnecessary or irrational purchases. The guidelines cover the definition of each type of dark pattern, what businesses must watch out for, and specific examples of legal violations.

Under the guidelines, businesses must obtain explicit consumer consent within 30 days before raising subscription fees or converting a free service into a paid subscription.

For example, if a monthly subscription rises from 5,000 won to 10,000 won ($7), it is not enough for a business to notify consumers by email and state that silence within a set period will be treated as consent. Renewing a subscription at the higher price without explicit consumer agreement constitutes a prohibited "hidden renewal." The fact that a consumer continues using the service or does not separately express refusal cannot be taken as consent.

When a business offers new subscribers a discounted rate for a limited period before switching to the regular price, it must obtain separate consent before doing so. Even if the original terms and conditions stated that "regular pricing will apply automatically after the promotional period ends," the business must seek consent again within 30 days before the price increase takes effect. The same applies when a free service converts to a paid subscription.

However, if an existing subscriber who was already paying the regular price temporarily received a discount and is then returned to the original price, that does not constitute a fee increase.

The guidelines also address one of the most widely recognized dark patterns: obstructing cancellation or withdrawal. The Fair Trade Commission recommended that cancellation and withdrawal buttons be placed on the login home screen or a "My Page" section accessible with a single click from the main screen — not buried under menus such as "Edit Personal Information" or "Security Settings," where consumers would not expect to find them.

The guidelines also set standards for "drip pricing," in which a low price is shown initially and mandatory costs are added during checkout. Businesses must display and advertise the total amount a consumer must pay for a normal purchase or use of a product from the very first screen where the price appears.

Costs that consumers cannot ordinarily refuse to pay must be included in that total. These include delivery and installation fees, taxes and levies, tariffs on imported products, service charges for travel products, cleaning fees, and city or accommodation taxes.

However, if there is a legitimate reason why a cost cannot be determined in advance or cannot be processed as part of a single online payment, it may be excluded from the total. In such cases, the first screen showing the price must clearly state that the cost has been excluded and explain why.

The Fair Trade Commission has classified dark patterns into four categories — deceptive, misleading, obstructive and pressuring — covering 13 types in total. These include hidden renewals, drip pricing, pre-selected options, false hierarchies, fake discounts and recommendations, bait-and-switch tactics, disguised advertising, trick questions, obstruction of cancellation or withdrawal, hidden information, price comparison interference and repeated interruptions.

Current e-commerce law prohibits five of these online interface practices: drip pricing, pre-selected options, false hierarchies, obstruction of cancellation or withdrawal, and repeated interruptions.

The new guidelines consolidate and update content previously scattered across existing self-regulatory guidelines and question-and-answer documents covering six regulated types, while adding specific examples of legal violations drawn from monitoring and enforcement results. The guidelines themselves carry no legal binding force; actual determinations of whether a violation has occurred are made under the E-Commerce Act, its enforcement decrees and rules, and the Consumer Protection Guidelines for E-Commerce.

"We expect these guidelines to help businesses better understand dark pattern regulation and smoothly fulfill their related obligations," the Fair Trade Commission said. "We will continue to monitor changes in the online trading environment and emerging forms of consumer harm, and will respond strictly to violations while pursuing necessary regulatory improvements."