Web accessibility evaluation of the fairdata website

Abstract

The significance of web accessibility has been recognized by many authorities and imposed by national legislation. In accordance with the legal requirements, the aim of this study is to determine all potential accessibility issues and make the target website accessible. The target website is a public site called “Fairdata”, which introduces multiple services designed for research data.

In order to assess the accessibility level of the website, automated testing and manual testing are combined to analyze whether each page complies with WCAG 2.1. An initial assessment is conducted to obtain an overview of accessibility problems, and then a comprehensive evaluation is performed to identify defects.

The results reveal that the website has many accessibility aspects violating WCAG 2.1 conformance level A and AA: lack of text alternatives, insufficient contrast ratio, and incomplete keyboard navigation. There are also specific problems when accessing tables and videos by screen readers. Besides, the target website tends to be more compatible with the combination of Voiceover with Chrome than other combinations. In the end, all findings are sorted out one by one according to WCAG 2.1 guidelines, respectively. Suggestions and solutions for meeting the accessibility standards are also provided correspondingly.