On February 14, 2025, an amendment to the Act on the Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce (the “E-Commerce Act”), which strengthens regulations on dark patterns, went into effect, along with related amendments to the Enforcement Decree and Enforcement Rules of the E-Commerce Act (the “Enforcement Regulations”).

In particular, the amended Enforcement Regulations (i) specify obligations and prohibitions regarding dark patterns as stipulated under the E-Commerce Act, and (ii) include specified criteria for imposing business suspensions and administrative fines for non-compliance with these obligations.

The amendments to the Enforcement Regulations aim to reinforce consumer protection in the online platform and e-commerce sectors by clarifying the regulations on dark patterns.

The key details of the amended Enforcement Regulations are as follows:

The amended E-Commerce Act sets forth obligations and prohibitions concerning six types of dark patterns: (i) hidden renewals, (ii) gradual disclosure of costs, (iii) pre-selection of purchase options, (iv) false hierarchies, (v) obstruction of cancellation or withdrawal, and (vi) repeated interference. The amended Enforcement Regulations specify the consent period for consumers related to hidden renewals and provide exceptions for gradual disclosure of costs and repeated interference.

E-commerce providers are required to obtain prior consent from consumers when increasing a subscription fee or converting a free service to a paid service (Article 13 (6) of the amended E-Commerce Act).

Specification of consent period: Consumer consent must be obtained at least 30 days prior to any increase in a subscription fee or conversion of a free service to a paid service (Article 20-2 of the amended Enforcement Decree).

E-commerce providers are prohibited from displaying or advertising only a portion of the total price of goods without justifiable grounds (Article 21-2 (1) 1 of the amended E-Commerce Act).

Exception: In cases where the total amount to be paid is difficult to list/advertise, the reasons must be disclosed on the first screen that displays the price information. The disclosure should specify the fees and items excluded from the initially advertised price, along with the reasons for their exclusion (i.e., why it is difficult to list the total amount at the outset). However, on pages with limited space, providing the justifiable grounds via a direct link to a pop-up page is allowed (Article 11-4 of the amended Enforcement Rules).

E-commerce providers are prohibited from repeatedly requesting that consumers change their choices (e.g., through pop-up windows) (Article 21-2 (1) 5 of the amended E-Commerce Act).

Exception: If consumers are given the option to opt out of receiving requests to change decisions that they have already made for at least seven days, these requests will be excluded from the scope of repeated interference (Article 27-2 of the amended Enforcement Decree).

The amended Enforcement Decree provides for the imposition of business suspensions and administrative fines for violations related to the aforementioned six types of dark patterns. It also specifies the base duration of business suspensions and the base amounts of administrative fines imposed based on the number of violations, as outlined below.

The KFTC has already imposed sanctions for violating the E-Commerce Act on the following entities: (i) five over-the-top (“OTT”) service providers for requiring consumers to go through cumbersome procedures to cancel contracts, (ii) an online retailer for labeling and advertising products at a discounted price even though it was unable to supply them, and (iii) an accommodation booking platform operator for failing to disclose that it displayed certain accommodations at the top of its search results page in return for advertising fees.

The KFTC included its commitment to monitor and prevent dark patterns in its Annual Enforcement Plan for 2025. In addition, on February 13, 2025, it published a Q&A document regarding regulations on dark patterns to provide guidance to market participants on the enforcement of the amended Enforcement Regulations. Such proactive efforts to regulate dark patterns as a means of protecting consumers will likely continue under the new administration.

Accordingly, companies should carefully follow regulatory developments regarding dark patterns and take adequate precautionary measures.

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