The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) were developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to ensure that web content is universally accessible.

As well as WCAG, there are other types of accessibility compliance to consider. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a US law that protects people with disabilities from discrimination, including on the web.  There is also Section 508, which is a part of US law (the US Rehabilitation Act of 1973) that specifically requires federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology accessible. This naturally has serious implications for any MR agency taking on research work for any of these federal agencies.

While WCAG, ADA and Section 508 all aim for accessibility, they approach it differently.  WCAG provides specific technical guidelines, while ADA and Section 508 are broader laws. Essentially, WCAG provides the ‘how-to’ for accessibility, while ADA and Section 508 provide the legal "why" (in the US).

WCAG conformance can be achieved at three different levels: A, AA, and AAA. Each level builds on the previous level like a pyramid. So, to meet Level AA, you must meet all of Level A, and to meet Level AAA, you must meet all of Level AA.

• Level A – this level represents the minimum level of conformance. Level A criteria affect the broadest group of users with the most benefits and are essential. But, with the base level of support, some barriers will still exist that impact certain groups of users.
• Level AA – this level is the most common target conformance level, often adopted in regulations or negotiated in legal settlements. The criteria at this level establish a higher level of accessibility that works for more users, including those who use assistive technology.
• Level AAA – this is the highest conformance level achievable, meaning it covers the success criteria of all three levels. However, Level AAA is not applicable or realistic in many situations.

Most organisations will target Level AA conformance, but some may choose to additionally adopt specific criteria at the AAA level.

We would recommend aiming for the level AA for online data collection.

The W3C encourages organisations to conform with the most recent version of WCAG as a best practice. While Section 508 requires conformance with WCAG 2.0 Level AA, the U.S. Department of Justice has referenced WCAG 2.1 Level AA (at a minimum) as the benchmark in its more recent ADA enforcement actions. Amidst this inconsistency, conformance with the latest version, WCAG 2.2, will not only provide improved accessibility for every user, but it will also ensure that your organisation is up to date in its compliance efforts, especially as future policy changes and updated legal rulemaking is inevitable.

Version 2.2 was released in October 2023 and has nine new success criteria:

• 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured (Minimum) (AA)
• 2.4.12 Focus Not Obscured (Enhanced) (AAA)
• 2.4.13 Focus Appearance (AAA)
• 2.5.7 Dragging Movements (AA)
• 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum) (AA)
• 3.2.6 Consistent Help (A)
• 3.3.7 Redundant Entry (A)
• 3.3.8 Accessible Authentication (Minimum) (AA)
• 3.3.9 Accessible Authentication (Enhanced) (AAA)