Module: General Practice
Q19: Under RBI guidelines on dark patterns, how is the deceptive practice of false urgency defined?
✅ Correct Answer: A
The correct answer is falsely stating or implying a sense of urgency to mislead a user into making an immediate purchase.
Examples of this trick include showing countdown timers on banking apps for special deals or using high-pressure words like act now or offer ends soon.
Another example is lying to customers by warning them that interest rates on pre-approved loans will go up if they do not take the loan right away.
The bank does this to stop customers from looking at other choices from different companies.
Examples of this trick include showing countdown timers on banking apps for special deals or using high-pressure words like act now or offer ends soon.
Another example is lying to customers by warning them that interest rates on pre-approved loans will go up if they do not take the loan right away.
The bank does this to stop customers from looking at other choices from different companies.
🧠 Real-World Scenario:
Imagine a user logs into their net banking portal. Suddenly, a giant red pop-up appears saying "Your pre-approved loan offer expires in 04:59 minutes! Rates will double!" with a ticking clock.
According to the rules, they can ignore this entirely, because the RBI classifies this fake ticking clock as an illegal Dark Pattern. This means banks cannot use panic tactics to stop you from comparing rates elsewhere.