Forced registration
Profile required before price estimate
A fictional repair service asks visitors to create a profile and verify a phone number before it reveals even an indicative service price.
Individual HTML example · Forced action
Account wall at guest checkout
A fictional retailer removes guest checkout after an item is added and requires a full account, date of birth and saved password before payment can continue.
This is an original fictional comparison. It depicts no real business and is not a regulator finding, statutory category or legal safe harbour.
Account wall at guest checkout
A fictional retailer removes guest checkout after an item is added and requires a full account, date of birth and saved password before payment can continue.
Create an account to continue. No guest route is shown after the basket has been prepared.. Email address: Enter email address. Date of birth: Enter date of birth. Password: Enter password. Register and save my details
Choose how to check out. Guest checkout and optional account creation are presented together.. Delivery email: Enter delivery email. Continue as guest. Purpose and refusal effect, expanded: The form explains why “Continue as guest” is requested and what happens if it is not used.
Why the first version can mislead: The additional dependency controls access to the checkout goal. The panel states: “No guest route is shown after the basket has been prepared.” Reviewers need to establish whether “Register and save my details” is necessary for the selected task or pressures the user into a separable action. A shopper may surrender unnecessary information or abandon a purchase after investing time in the basket.
What a fairer design does: Keep a clearly labelled guest route beside account creation and request only delivery and payment data needed for the order.
Show annotated differences (4)
Potentially problematic version
- No guest route is shown after the basket has been prepared.Why this state matters: The additional dependency controls access to the checkout goal. The panel states: “No guest route is shown after the basket has been prepared.” Reviewers need to establish whether “Register and save my details” is necessary for the selected task or pressures the user into a separable action. A shopper may surrender unnecessary information or abandon a purchase after investing time in the basket.
- Register and save my detailsReview prompt: What functional need makes “Register and save my details” necessary for the online retail checkout goal, and can that need be met with less disclosure or commitment?
Neutral alternative
- Guest checkout and optional account creation are presented together.Fairer design: Keep a clearly labelled guest route beside account creation and request only delivery and payment data needed for the order.
- Purpose and refusal effect, expanded: The form explains why “Continue as guest” is requested and what happens if it is not used.Review prompt: Which fields or permissions are required, what happens on refusal, and does the resulting state support this criterion: “A desired goal is gated by account creation”?
Review questions (3)
- What functional need makes “Register and save my details” necessary for the online retail checkout goal, and can that need be met with less disclosure or commitment?
- Which fields or permissions are required, what happens on refusal, and does the resulting state support this criterion: “A desired goal is gated by account creation”?
- Could the stated purpose make this dependency genuinely necessary under the boundary “Account creation that is inherently necessary for persistent account functionality”, and what product evidence would demonstrate that necessity?
Complete practice context
How this example relates to Forced registration
The user must create an account, or is led to believe one is required, to complete a goal that could plausibly be provided without it. This is a design and research taxonomy for learning and evidence review, not a statutory offence label or an automatic finding that an interface is unlawful.
The full guide explains inclusion and exclusion criteria, potential harms, fairer design, evidence questions and separate Australian legal information layers. The example page isolates one scenario so it can be shared and discussed without reproducing the complete library on one page.
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Sources and provenance for this example
Evidence base
Sources
- Dark commercial patternsOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development · Secondary · checked 2026-09-14 · OECD Digital Economy Papers No. 336
- Competition and Consumer Amendment (Unfair Trading Practices) Act 2026Federal Register of Legislation · Primary · checked 2026-09-14 · C2026A00064
- Competition and Consumer Act 2010, including Schedule 2: Australian Consumer LawFederal Register of Legislation · Primary · checked 2026-09-14 · C2004A00109
- Manipulative conduct in the digital economy, pricing claims and competition in essential services among ACCC priorities for year aheadAustralian Competition and Consumer Commission · Primary · checked 2026-08-09