More than eight in 10 mobile subscribers in India believe deceptive "dark patterns" are widespread across the telecom sector, according to a nationwide LocalCircles survey, which has urged the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) and the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to step up enforcement against misleading digital practices.
The survey, which received over 74,000 responses from consumers across 341 districts, found that users of Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea (VI) reported experiencing multiple dark patterns, including bait-and-switch tactics, subscription traps, forced actions, hidden charges and persistent promotional notifications.
The findings come as India's telecom industry witnesses rapid expansion, with media reports estimating 365 million 5G subscribers and a combined mobile subscriber base of 1.22 billion. While digital adoption has accelerated, consumer complaints over misleading recharge plans, data usage policies, validity periods and bundled subscriptions have also increased, prompting LocalCircles to conduct the nationwide study after TRAI sought evidence and examples of such practices.
The report notes that although India introduced guidelines against dark patterns in 2023 through the CCPA, prohibiting deceptive online practices across goods and services, telecom consumers continue to encounter several such tactics.
Among the various deceptive practices, bait-and-switch was the most commonly reported. Around 79 per cent of respondents said they had experienced situations where a recharge plan or offer advertised with certain features or pricing became unavailable during purchase or was replaced with a more expensive or less beneficial alternative.
The report cites consumer complaints involving all three private telecom operators. Examples include Airtel users receiving lower daily data than advertised after recharge, Jio subscribers being shifted to lower-value plans requiring additional payments for equivalent benefits, and Vodafone Idea customers receiving shorter validity periods than promised.
Hidden Charges And Recurring Subscriptions Remain Major Issues
The survey also found that 59 per cent of respondents were ultimately charged more than the price initially displayed because of processing, convenience or service fees that were not disclosed upfront.
Subscription-related complaints were equally significant. More than half (53 per cent) of respondents said services marketed as one-time purchases later turned into recurring annual or monthly subscriptions, with cancellation options often difficult to locate or complete. Respondents cited examples such as bundled digital subscriptions that automatically renewed without an easy opt-out process.
Consumers Report Forced Actions And Persistent Promotional Messages
Half of the surveyed users said they had been compelled to purchase additional services or share unnecessary personal information before accessing the service they originally intended to buy. The report identifies this as a "Forced Action" dark pattern, highlighting examples linked to telecom service plans and account verification requirements.
Meanwhile, 78 per cent of respondents said they regularly received repeated notifications, calls or pop-ups encouraging them to recharge, upgrade plans, install applications or enable notifications despite dismissing previous prompts.
Airtel Hotspot Policy Cited As A Recent Example
The report specifically highlights complaints surrounding Airtel's "Unlimited 5G Data" plans. According to LocalCircles, consumers alleged that hotspot usage was excluded from unlimited data benefits after the plans were marketed, with tethered usage instead deducted from limited daily data allowances. Users also reported being flagged for alleged commercial usage and asked to share account information, which the report characterises as a forced-action dark pattern.
Call For Regulatory Enforcement
LocalCircles concluded that existing guidelines alone have not curbed deceptive practices in the telecom sector. It has urged TRAI to mandate the removal of dark patterns across telecom operators and called on the CCPA to begin active enforcement, noting that despite complaints spanning two years, no enforcement notices have been issued against the country's three private telecom operators. The organisation said it will formally escalate the survey findings to both regulators for policy and enforcement action.