Media Releases
CCS Takes Action against Courts and PRISM+ for Misleading Website Features
8 December 2025
(View media release in PDF)
1. The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (“CCS”) has found that two retailers of consumer electronics and home appliances, Courts[1] and PRISM+[2], have used website design features that mislead consumers. Courts automatically added unsolicited items into consumers’ shopping carts, while PRISM+ used fake countdown timers and misleading stock indicators to pressure consumers into purchases.
“Sneak into Basket” by Courts
2. Following a consumer complaint, CCS investigated and found that Courts engaged in an unfair trade practice by charging consumers for products they never selected. During certain promotion periods, Courts’ website (https://www.courts.com.sg) automatically added certain items to consumers’ carts without seeking their consent. For example, an Acer vacuum cleaner was added to a consumer’s cart after that consumer selected an Apple iPad for purchase.[3]
3. This practice puts consumers at risk of unknowingly paying for the unsolicited items if they (a) failed to notice and (b) remove such items before checkout.[4] Despite receiving customer complaints about this practice in as early as 2024, Courts made no changes until CCS intervened in June 2025.[5]
4. Courts has given an undertaking to CCS to cease this practice immediately. In addition to making changes to its website, Courts also agreed to refund customers affected by this unfair trade practice.[6]
“False Urgency” by PRISM+
5. In a separate investigation, CCS identified multiple design features on PRISM+’s website (https://prismplus.sg/) that have the effect of creating false urgency in order to pressure consumers into hasty purchases.
6. The problematic features were:[7]
a) Fake countdown timers: Messages stating “Popular items are selling fast! Purchase within the next [timer] minutes to secure stock and avoid losing out” appeared on checkout pages. However, these timers served no technical function, were not linked to any of PRISM+’s inventory systems and simply reset after reaching zero without affecting the checkout process.
b) Misleading stock indicators: "In Stock: Running Low" appeared on product pages on PRISM+’s website even when substantial inventory was still available. For one product, this indicator was displayed even though monthly sales figures represented only 7% of PRISM+’s total available stock. PRISM+ explained that the indicator “In Stock: Running Low” is used for any product with inventory levels above 100 units.[8] CCS noted that this threshold was not clearly disclosed to consumers.
c) Unsubstantiated shortage claims: Statements like “While other brands are all out-of-stock due to supply chain disruption…”, and “There’s an industry-wide shortage and all brands are sold out completely…” appeared on product pages on PRISM+’s website. When asked by CCS, PRISM+ could not substantiate such statements and claimed that statements were made in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
d) Inflated discounts e.g. “Up to 67% off”: CCS found that for ten products, their discounts against the strikethrough price were listed as “up to 67% off”. However, the maximum discount of 67% was unachievable for these ten products as the actual discounts provided did not amount to 67% of the undiscounted price of the products (i.e. the strikethrough price). For one product, the discount only amounted to 38% of the strikethrough price, in contrast to the 67% off claim.[9] PRISM+ attributed this to technical errors.
7. PRISM+ has rectified these website issues and provided an undertaking to CCS that it will not engage in any unfair trade practices.
Advice to Businesses
8. Under Singapore’s fair trading laws, it is an unfair trade practice for businesses to charge for the supply of unsolicited products, or to make false or misleading claims to pressure consumers into making purchases. Businesses should ensure that consumers agree to the purchase of any product and provide clear disclosure of the price and nature of any add-ons before checkout. Any statements made about products, including those on stock availability or price discounts, should be truthful and factually accurate. Countdown timers should only reflect genuine timelines given to consumers, while stock indicators should be genuine and reasonable.
Tips for Consumers
9. When shopping online, consumers should review their shopping cart for unexpected items, verify that payment amounts match intended purchases, and question the authenticity of urgency claims before making impulse purchases. Consumers may refer to the CCS website[10] for information on identifying and protecting themselves against various false and misleading website design features (otherwise known as “dark patterns”).
10. "These two interventions form part of a series of recent enforcement actions taken by CCS against businesses that employ dark patterns to mislead and pressure consumers into unintended purchases,” said CCS Chief Executive Mr Alvin Koh. "CCS remains committed to ensuring fair, transparent and honest business practices in the digital space, enabling genuine competition amongst suppliers while empowering consumers to make informed decisions.”
11. Members of the public who would like to report cases of unfair trade practices by errant businesses may contact CASE at 6277 5100 (Mondays to Fridays, 9am to 5pm) or via https://crdcomplaints.azurewebsites.net/.
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Encl.
Annex A – Screenshots on Courts’ “sneak into basket” conduct on its website
Annex B – Screenshots of Courts’ cart-out process after changes were made
Annex C – Screenshots of the features on PRISM+’s website and the changes made
About the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore
The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (“CCS”) is a statutory board of the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Our mission is to make markets work well to create opportunities and choices for businesses and consumers in Singapore.
CCS administers and enforces the Competition Act 2004 and the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act 2003 to guard against anti-competitive activities and unfair trade practices. Additionally, CCS ensures that businesses observe fair trade measurement practices by administering the Weights and Measures Act 1975, and ensures the supply of safe consumer goods by enforcing and implementing the Consumer Protection (Trade Descriptions and Safety Requirements) Act 1975 and its associated Regulations.
For more information, please visit https://www.ccs.gov.sg/.
[1] Courts (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.
[2] Prism Tech Private Limited.
[3] Refer to Annex A for screenshots of Courts’ “sneak into basket” conduct on its website.
[4] CCS’s concern does not apply to free gifts that are added to cart, as consumers are not charged for them.
[5] Although Courts refunded these customers, there may be other affected customers who are unaware or have decided not to pursue the matter.
[6] Refer to Annex B for screenshots of the changes that were made to Courts’ carting process.
[7] Refer to Annex C for screenshots of the features on PRISM+’s website and the changes made
[8] When the inventory level for a product falls below 100 units, “Few Units Left: Hurry!” will be displayed.
[9] For example, PRISM+ EverShine TMF 420 Refrigerator was priced at $799 with a strikethrough price of $1,299. This represented only a discount of 38%, contrary to the displayed “up to 67% off”.
[10] https://www.ccs.gov.sg/consumer-protection/fair-trading-practices/know-more-about-dark-patterns