8 in 10 mobile subscribers find dark patterns to be rampant in the telecom sector; Demand action from TRAI and CCPA

New Delhi, July 24, 2026, New Delhi: Consumers across India are reporting that Bharti Airtel has quietly changed the terms of its “Unlimited 5G Data” plans to block mobile hotspot use — a textbook “Forced Action” dark pattern. Airtel’s fine print now states that the unlimited 5G benefit cannot be shared via hotspot, effectively turning an “unlimited” plan into a smartphone-only service. When a subscriber tethers a laptop or tablet, that traffic is deducted from the limited daily 4G allowance (typically 1.5–2GB) instead. The change followed complaints that data was depleting rapidly even in 5G areas, with many users flagged for alleged “commercial use” and pushed to share account details — the hallmark of a dark pattern that manipulates users against their own interest.

Dark patterns are user-interface elements that influence a person’s behavior against their intentions or best interests. In 2023, India banned dark patterns on eCommerce platforms under Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) guidelines applicable to all platforms, advertisers and sellers offering goods and services in India. The guidelines define 13 deceptive practices, including creating false urgency through artificial scarcity and “basket sneaking,” where extra items or donations are added at checkout without consent.

The telecom sector is growing rapidly — 365 million 5G subscribers and 35% penetration within three years, with monthly data consumption reaching 18–55GB and a combined subscriber base of 1.22 billion as of July 2025. Alongside this growth, users have reported a steady stream of dark patterns to LocalCircles over the past 12 months — from hotspot exclusions and hidden add-on services to misleading offers on call rates, data, recharge validity and OTT subscriptions that fail to deliver what was promised, across both prepaid and postpaid connections.

When LocalCircles escalated these concerns, TRAI sought data points and examples. To enable this, LocalCircles conducted a national survey that received over 74,000 responses from mobile-service users across 341 districts of India. Respondents were 67% men and 33% women; 43% from tier 1, 29% from tier 2, and 28% from tier 3, 4 and rural districts.

What the Survey Found

Subscription Trap — 53%: Of 11,332 respondents, 53% said a service sold as one-time was billed on a recurring basis (23% “very frequently,” 30% “sometimes”). CCPA guidelines warn of tactics such as hiding the cancellation option or compelling payment details for “free” subscriptions. Users cited Vodafone Idea (VI) selling Amazon Prime at a discount, then billing full price yearly with cancellation buried in the interface.

Forced Action — 50%: Of 11,146 respondents, 50% were forced at least once to buy an additional service or share unnecessary private information — such as Aadhaar or card details — to complete an intended purchase (25% “very frequently,” 25% “sometimes”). Airtel’s move to exclude hotspot use from “Unlimited 5G” plans is a prominent example.

Drip Pricing — 59%: Of 17,523 respondents, 59% said the final price charged was higher than shown, due to undisclosed processing, convenience or service fees (43% “very frequently”).

Nagging — 78%: Of 17,180 respondents, 78% faced repeated messages, notifications or pop-ups urging them to recharge, upgrade, install apps or enable notifications even after dismissing them (63% “very frequently”).

Bait & Switch — 79%: Of 17,182 respondents, 79% found that a plan or recharge package advertised with specific features or prices was unavailable at purchase or replaced with a costlier, more limited one (57% “very frequently”). In all, 81% of users surveyed experienced at least one dark pattern.

Dark Patterns Across All Three Operators

Bait & Switch, Forced Action, Subscription Trap and Nagging were reported on Airtel, Vodafone Idea and Jio alike. Representative complaints include: an Airtel ₹859 plan advertised as 2GB/day delivering only 1.5GB; a Jio ₹479 unlimited-voice-plus-6GB plan withdrawn and effectively repriced to ₹527 for the same service; a VI ₹799 recharge giving 77 days instead of 84; Jio’s AirFiber hiding the ‘change plan’ option after an upgrade; VI deactivating a paid annual caller-tune and demanding fresh payment; and users unable to cancel Airtel’s Perplexity or VI’s Amazon Prime promotional subscriptions before charges began. Jio was also found promoting higher-priced plans upfront while obscuring the ₹189 option (Interface Interference), and VI bombarding a porting customer with repeated retention calls (Nagging).

The Call to Action

While the CCPA guidelines aim to discourage dark patterns and raise consumer awareness, LocalCircles says this is not enough. The need of the hour is for TRAI to mandate removal of dark patterns by all telecom operators — as RBI, IRDAI and SEBI are doing following LocalCircles submissions — while CCPA begins enforcement in telecom, where not a single notice has been issued in two years despite all three private operators’ platforms being riddled with dark patterns. LocalCircles will escalate these findings to both TRAI and CCPA so policy and enforcement measures can address the major consumer-trust gap in the sector on priority.