California Passes New Regulation Banning Dark Patterns Under Landmark Privacy Law

New regulations were approved under California’s Consumer Privacy Act on Monday that will prohibit the use of so-called dark patterns — tricks deployed by websites or apps that seek to frustrate or bamboozle users into doing things they wouldn’t normally do.

In a Monday press release, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced the new regulations, approved by the state’s Office of Administrative Law, and said that the updated restrictions will strengthen the landmark CCPA legislation approved in August 2020.