Overview
- The Central Consumer Protection Authority issued the orders and penalties on June 3, 2026, imposing Rs 5 lakh on PhysicsWallah and Rs 1 lakh on McAfee and directing both to remove the identified practices immediately.
- The CCPA found PhysicsWallah auto‑selected a Rs 10 donation at checkout and used emotionally coercive messages to discourage its removal, a tactic the regulator classified as 'basket sneaking' and 'confirm shaming'.
- Investigators also found PhysicsWallah labeled courses as free but required users to give mobile numbers and email addresses to access identical content, a practice the CCPA called 'forced action' and misleading.
- The authority said McAfee’s renewal page presented only 'Renew Now' and 'Accept Risk' options with a prominent renew button, framing non‑renewal as dangerous and depriving users of a neutral choice.
- The orders cite the Consumer Protection Act, the E‑commerce Rules and the CCPA’s 2023 Dark Patterns Guidelines and follow a 2025 advisory urging platforms to self‑audit, signaling stronger, ongoing enforcement that could push companies to redesign consent and checkout flows.