Organization

University of Waterloo

Published

2025

Project Leader(s)

Leah Zhang-Kennedy, Ph.D.

Lennart Nacke

Summary

This research investigates deceptive design in Virtual Reality (VR) environments and its impact on user privacy. The research team at the University of Waterloo conducted an autoethnographic evaluation of 12 top-rated VR applications to analyze deceptive design patterns in their privacy communication and interaction mechanisms. The findings reveal 14 distinct deceptive design patterns and demonstrate how deceptive tactics in traditional web and mobile environments are being adapted to immersive environments. While many of these patterns still heavily rely on 2D interface elements, VR’s unbounded, immersive, and multi-sensory features amplify their impact and increase privacy risks for users. The VR applications’ convoluted privacy policies and consent mechanisms further hinder user comprehension of the data practices. Through the evaluation, the research team also identified 7 exemplary privacy-enhancing design strategies, which can serve as a foundation for improved implementation of privacy mechanisms in VR environments.

To assess user perceptions of these deceptive design patterns, the research team surveyed 424 users of the selected VR applications. The findings indicate that while users felt the manipulative influences and expressed discomfort, they often resigned themselves to accepting privacy-invasive options and viewing such designs as “typical” or “inevitable” across both VR and non-VR platforms. Their repetitive exposure to such design in mobile and web environments fostered a false sense of normalcy and eroded user resistance to manipulation. This research provides valuable insights for VR developers, designers, policymakers, and researchers on creating privacy-preserving VR experiences and developing clearer, more ethical privacy policies in this rapidly evolving field.

Project deliverables are available in the following language(s):

We have made the research materials and outcomes available.

OPC Funded Project

This project received funding support through the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s Contributions Program. The opinions expressed in the summary and report(s) are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Summaries have been provided by the project authors. Please note that the projects appear in their language of origin.

Contact Information

Leah Zhang-Kennedy, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Stratford School of Interaction Design and Business 125 St. Patrick Street Stratford, Ontario N5A 0C1

Telephone: (519) 888-4567 (work) University of Waterloo

Email: lzhangke@uwaterloo.ca