South Korea Names 13 Dark Patterns. The Philippines Moves to Ban Minors from Social Media. Two Approaches From Asia.

Two significant regulatory developments in Asia this week illustrate different ways governments are responding to the same underlying concerns about online consumer protection and children’s safety online.

South Korea: 13 dark patterns, named and defined

The Korea Fair Trade Commission has published guidelines covering 13 types of dark pattern under the Act on Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce. The guidelines consolidate and update material previously spread across two earlier publications, a 2023 self-regulation guide and a 2025 Q&A document, and add concrete examples of violations drawn from the KFTC’s own monitoring and enforcement work.

The guidelines are organised into four categories.

Deceptive types cover hidden renewals and sequential price disclosure. On hidden renewals, businesses must obtain explicit consent from consumers within 30 days before a recurring payment increases or a free trial converts to paid. They must clearly notify the consumer of the change date, the old and new prices, and the cancellation conditions. Continued use cannot be interpreted as implicit consent. On sequential price disclosure, the first screen showing a product’s price must display the total amount including all mandatory costs. If the total cannot be calculated in advance, the initial screen must state which items are excluded and why.

Misleading types cover pre-selected options, misleading visual hierarchy, fake discounts, fake recommendations, bait and switch, disguised advertising, and trick questions. Pre-selected checkboxes for additional products are prohibited. Visual differences between options must not be so extreme that consumers are misled into thinking one choice is mandatory. Discount rates must be based on genuine previously transacted prices. Consumer reviews must be displayed as they are, with negative feedback not deleted without justification. Influencer posts, articles, or reviews created in exchange for compensation must clearly disclose that they are advertising.

Obstruction types cover cancellation and withdrawal, hidden information, and obstruction of price comparison. The cancellation process must not be more complex than sign-up. The cancellation button should be easy to find, ideally on the first screen after logging in or one click away. If a consumer signed up online, they must be able to cancel online without being required to call customer service.

Pressure types cover repeated interference. If a consumer has declined a membership or opted out of marketing, the business must not repeatedly use pop-ups to pressure them to change that decision.

Violations of these guidelines can result in corrective measures, business suspensions, or administrative fines ranging from 10 million to 20 million won depending on the specific provision breached.

The Philippines: restricting access for under-18s

The Philippine Senate passed the Safe Media Access and Responsible Technology for Kids in Digital Spaces Act, known as the SMART KIDS Act, on October 8. The bill would require platforms to suspend, restrict, disable, or remove any account reasonably determined to belong to someone under 18, and to prevent minors from creating accounts through effective age assurance measures.

The scope of the restrictions covers social media and other high-risk digital services. Email, private messaging, education and news services, and certain online gaming platforms are excluded.

Platforms that violate the requirements would face fines of ₱5 million to ₱20 million per violation, plus ₱100,000 for each day of non-compliance. Parents who knowingly help a child bypass age checks could face fines of up to ₱50,000 or community service.

The bill passed the Senate with an age threshold of 18, raised from the original proposed threshold of 16. It still needs to pass the House of Representatives, where the two chambers will need to agree on the final age threshold before the law can come into effect. Implementation would be overseen by the Department of Information and Communications Technology.

What the two cases have in common

South Korea’s guidelines work at the level of interface mechanics, defining specific patterns and specifying what compliant design looks like in practice. The Philippines is working at the level of access, seeking to remove minors from platforms rather than regulating how those platforms are designed. Both reflect a broader shift toward treating platform design and children’s access as questions requiring specific legal frameworks.

Fairpatterns detects the dark pattern types the KFTC has now codified automatically, across platforms and markets.