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The Department of Consumer Affairs has notified the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) (Amendment) Rules, 2026, amending the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020.
Platforms must stop manipulating search results, label sponsored listings prominently, and show both the reduced and the prior price - the prior price being the lowest at which the item was offered in the preceding 30 days.
Every e-commerce entity must join the National Consumer Helpline convergence process; the NCH received 17,71,622 grievances in 2025, of which 5,11,196 (about 29 per cent) concerned e-commerce.
Compliance with the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023 becomes mandatory, with a yearly self-audit and a prominently displayed compliance certificate.
The amended Rules come into force on 1 January 2027.
Replaced the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 and came into force in July 2020. It recognised e-commerce transactions, introduced product liability and created the Central Consumer Protection Authority. The E-Commerce Rules are framed under it.
Notified 23 July 2020, they apply to goods and services sold over digital networks under both the marketplace and inventory models, and impose duties on display, grievance redressal and unfair trade practices. The 2026 amendment strengthens these duties.
Notified by the Central Consumer Protection Authority on 30 November 2023, listing 13 specified dark patterns - deceptive interface designs that push users into choices they did not intend. The amendment converts adherence into a rule-based obligation with an annual self-audit.
Regulator established under Section 10 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 to protect and enforce consumer rights as a class; it investigates violations, orders recall of unsafe goods, halts unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements, and imposes penalties. It issued the dark patterns guidelines.
Pre-litigation grievance redressal channel of the Department of Consumer Affairs, reachable on 1915 and through app, portal, WhatsApp and SMS in multiple languages. Its convergence programme brings companies on board to resolve complaints directly - which the amendment now makes compulsory for e-commerce entities.
Interface or user-experience designs that mislead or trick users into doing something they did not intend - false urgency, basket sneaking, confirm shaming, forced action, subscription traps and drip pricing among the 13 listed by the CCPA in 2023.
Simple Analogy: A shop aisle deliberately laid out so you leave with things you never meant to buy.
| Aspect | Marketplace entity | Inventory entity |
|---|---|---|
| Role | Provides an IT platform connecting buyers and independent sellers | Owns the inventory and sells directly to consumers |
| Examples in rule terms | Platform facilitating third-party sellers | Includes single-brand retailers and multi-channel single-brand retailers |
| Extra duties added in 2026 | Seller and product disclosures, consent for consumer data, no unrelated bundled fees, importer and country-of-origin details | Common duties on search results, sponsored listings, price display and dark patterns apply |
GS Paper 2 > Governance > Statutory and Regulatory Bodies; Consumer Rights
General Awareness > Acts, Rules and Regulatory Bodies
Deceptive interface design that tricks a user into an unintended choice; the CCPA specified 13 such patterns in 2023.
Under the amended Rules, the lowest price at which goods or services were offered during the 30 days preceding an announced price reduction.
An entity that provides an IT platform for third-party sellers, as distinct from an inventory entity that owns and sells its own stock.