Overlays' false claims finally get their due
Color me surprised.
For years, accessibility professionals have been trying to call attention to the misleading claims being made by overlay vendors. Despite the fact that over 900 accessibility professionals across the globe have signed and shared the Overlay Factsheet, it often felt like it didn’t matter. Even when I cataloged overlay vendors’ false claims it didn’t seem to matter. For years accessibility professional had to constantly face an uphill battle to convince others that it isn’t possible to just add a widget to your site to become ADA compliant.
Today, the FTC weighed in.
Today, the FTC announced that they have ordered accessiBe to pay $1,000,000 “to settle allegations that it misrepresented the ability of its AI-powered web accessibility tool to make any website compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) for people with disabilities.“
It is important to acknowledge, however, that accessiBe has not been the only overlay company to engage in the behavior alleged by the FTC. As discussed in the links I shared in the beginning of this message, deceptive marketing goes hand-in-hand with overlay companies.
With this Consent Order, the FTC has put overlay vendors on notice: False claims and deceptive marketing practices will not stand.
There’s only one way a website becomes ADA-compliant: Skilled developers make it so. If you need help getting there, AFixt is here to help.
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