The European Commission has proposed the Digital Fairness Act to strengthen online consumer protection and target practices it says exploit users. The draft would ban dark patterns, address addictive digital designs, misleading influencer marketing, pricing practices and subscription traps, and impose fines of up to 6% of a company’s annual global turnover for violations. It would also cover practices such as encouraging consumers to buy more and using personalised advertising to target children. EU justice chief Michael McGrath said the rules are intended to make competition depend on the merits of products and services rather than companies’ ability to exploit consumers or evade regulations. The proposal forms part of a broader EU crackdown requiring Big Tech and online platforms to do more to police their services, but must still be approved by EU countries and the European Parliament. Some businesses have criticised the measure over overlaps with existing laws and a proposed plan to protect children online.