Disguised Advertisement
Masking advertisements as actual content that blends in with the
rest of an interface, tricking customers into clicking on them
0*
Disguised ads were not conclusively detected in the
applications studied.
*The absence of detection does not imply that Disguised Ads do not exist but
highlights the difficulty in distinguishing between genuine organic content and
paid content
Customer Reviews and Testimonials
often do not disclose their authenticity, making it hard to distinguish genuine feedback from paid reviews.
The study found this issue prevalent in Travel Booking, Health Tech, and E-commerce sectors, with 10 out of 15 apps not indicating review authenticity.
Definition
A pattern that businesses employ to deceive users
into clicking on advertisements by disguising them
as regular content within the interface in order to
drive traffic to promoted content
Ways in which design can address
Disguised Advertisement
Respecting User Attention
Designate spaces for advertisements within the interface, ensuring they are distinguishable from other useful content.
Upfront Disclosure
Label advertisements and customer reviews before users engage. Use labels like "Sponsored", "Ad", and "Verified Reviews".
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Privacy Deception and other Deceptive Patterns