The whole point of Substack, specifically, is that people can sign up to get your writing via email, no? It sounds like the author is using it for a purpose that it wasn't really intended for.
But also, it's not really a dark pattern. How does Substack benefit from this? The only people getting the email are the ones who signed up. And it costs them money.
And also, it seems like the author has raised a "dark pattern" (singular). They're unhappy that a single checkbox defaults to checked. Which is...pretty benign.
But also, it's not really a dark pattern. How does Substack benefit from this? The only people getting the email are the ones who signed up. And it costs them money.
And also, it seems like the author has raised a "dark pattern" (singular). They're unhappy that a single checkbox defaults to checked. Which is...pretty benign.