Advertising Board rains fines on companies in the first 9 months of the year: 187 million 456 thousand TL...

The Advertising Board has decided to impose 187 million 456 thousand 473 Turkish Lira in administrative fines on companies due to deceptive advertising or unfair commercial practices in the first 9 months of the year.

In a statement made by the Ministry of Trade, it was reported that the Board, at its September meeting, took decisions regarding many advertisements and commercial practices of a deceptive and misleading nature, and discussed deceptive commercial designs known globally as "dark patterns."

The statement, which provided information that 118 out of 144 files discussed at this month's meeting were found to be in violation of regulations, stated that it was decided to impose a suspension penalty and a total of 22 million 414 thousand 861 Turkish Lira in administrative fines regarding the advertisements and commercial practices in question.

The statement expressed that dark patterns are defined as practices that are mostly found in online user interfaces and that deceive, coerce, or manipulate consumers into making choices that are generally not in their best interest.

'MISLEADING COMMERCIAL METHODS THAT NEGATIVELY AFFECT CONSUMER WILL'

Pointing out that ex officio investigations were initiated as a result of a sweep conducted by the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN) between January 29 and February 2, 2024, regarding dark patterns in subscription services with the participation of 27 consumer protection authorities worldwide, including the Ministry, the statement underlined that decisions were taken at this meeting regarding practices related to subscription services.

The statement indicated that manipulative elements such as some subscription packages presented to consumers as pre-selected or additional services linked to them, and the "accept" option being emphasized more than the "reject" option in updated membership agreements were evaluated, and the following expressions were used:

"Furthermore, practices such as the use of interface designs that make it difficult for consumers to complete a purchase without upgrading their desired subscription package were addressed. At the meeting, it was stated that practices such as emphasizing that certain subscription packages are popular without specifying transparent criteria and numerical data, and mandating payment method information from consumers to offer free trial opportunities are also misleading commercial methods that negatively affect consumer will. It was decided to impose administrative sanctions on companies found to be engaging in such practices."

187 MILLION 456 THOUSAND 473 TL FINE

Noting that the Advertising Board's investigations into deceptive commercial designs that consumers encounter on digital platforms in various sectors continue, the statement said, "The Advertising Board reviewed and evaluated a total of 1340 files in the first 9 months of the year. In addition to suspension penalties, a total of 187 million 456 thousand 473 Turkish Lira in administrative fines were imposed regarding 1173 files determined to be deceptive advertising or unfair commercial practices."

News Source: 12punto