Explained | What are ‘dark patterns’ and how they harm internet users

The rabbit hole of the internet can be a scary jungle sometimes. Going online was a deliberate act just 15 years ago. It has now become a perpetual state thanks to smartphones, smart this, smart that and whatnot. What was once promise of a free and equal virtual world soon attracted attention of big corporate companies and maybe thus started the cat and mouse game of regulations, laws and tactics to bypass them.