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Reference > US Section 508 (2001)

Issues due to failing to meet the US Section 508 (2001) web accessibility standards. Note that from 2017, US Section 508 now uses WCAG v2.

Code
Summary
Details
E800
US-508-a: Provide a text equivalent for non-text items using alt
When using <img>, specify a short text equivalent with the alt attribute.
E806
US-508-a: Image buttons should have alt text that describes them
When using image buttons, specify a short text equivalent with the alt attribute.
E807
US-508-a: Provide a text equivalent for non-text items using alt
When using <applet>, specify a short text equivalent with the alt attribute.
E808
US-508-a: Provide a text equivalent for non-text items using alt
When using <area>, specify a short text equivalent with the alt attribute.
E812
US-508-a: Provide a text equivalent for non-text items using alt
When using <embed>, specify a short text equivalent with the alt attribute.
E813
US-508-a: Provide a text equivalent by placing some text in this tag
When using <iframe>, specify a short text equivalent by placing some text within it.
E814
US-508-a: When using a text alternative, it must be meaningful
If the text in the 'text alternative' cannot be used in place of the non-text content without losing information or function then it fails because it is not, in fact, an alternative to the non-text content.
P815
US-508-a: When using a text alternative, it must not include ASCII art or smileys
If the text in the 'text alternative' when read aloud does not sound meaningful then it fails because it is not, in fact, an alternative to the non-text content.
W802
US-508-a: Is the alt text deliberately empty?
When using <img>, it is valid to have an empty alt attribute for images that have no content; such as spacers and parts of larger images that have been broken up or used for other layout purposes. You may wish to check that in this case the alt text has not simply been forgotten, in which case it would be a [US-508-a] error.
W804
US-508-a: The corresponding <noembed> element is missing or misplaced
For each <embed> element you should provide either a nested <noembed> element or a <noembed> element immediately following it.
W803
US-508-d: Put all CSS styling into external style sheets
You should place all CSS styling into external style sheets. By doing so, users may override styles or ignore them completely. This also simplifies processing for screen readers.
P801
US-508-f: If possible use a client-side instead of a server-side image map
Unless you are using regions that cannot be defined with an available geometric shape, you should use a client-side instead of a server-side image map. If you must use a server-side map ensure that there is an accessible alternative available.
E809
US-508-g: For data tables identify row and column headers
No <th> tags where found in a table or they contain no text, suggesting that you have not clearly identified any row and column headers.
E810
US-508-h: For data tables use mark-up to associate data cells and header cells
For data tables you should use mark-up to associate data cells and header cells, and no such mark-up was found.
E805
US-508-i: Add a title attribute to facilitate identification and navigation
Title each <frame> and <frameset> to facilitate frame identification and navigation.
E816
US-508-i: Add a meaningful title attribute to facilitate identification and navigation
Title each <frame> and <frameset> to facilitate frame identification and navigation.
E826
US-508-j: Do not use this tag. Consider <em> or using CSS instead
Until user agents allow users to control blinking, avoid causing content to blink.
E827
US-508-j: Do not use this tag. Consider <em> or using CSS instead
Until user agents allow users to freeze moving content, avoid movement in pages.
P800
US-508-l: Consider providing a <noscript> alternative after each <script> tag
This issue appears if you have defined a <script> and there is no <noscript> alternative following it. You should ensure that pages are usable when scripts are turned off or not supported. Using <noscript> is a common way of doing this, but if you have used an alternative mechanism you can ignore this issue.
E831
US-508-n: Associate form controls with <label> tags using the id attribute
Associate labels explicitly with their controls.
E831
US-508-n: No matching <label> tag could be found, or label is empty
Associate labels explicitly with their controls.
E831
US-508-n: Associate <label> tags with form controls using the for attribute
Associate labels explicitly with their controls.
E831
US-508-n: Label text is missing
Associate labels explicitly with their controls.
E831
US-508-n: Associate labels with just one form control
Associate labels explicitly with their controls.
E841
US-508-n: The <fieldset> element should only be used within a form
Using a <fieldset> outside of a form usually indicates it is being used for presentation effects. Tags that create a visual presentation effect should not be used. You should use style sheets to control layout and presentation.
W850
US-508-o: Add a skip navigation link as the first link on the page
If your document has structure then you should add header elements and/or a skip navigation link to make it easier for accessible users to get to the page's content.
W851
US-508-o: Skip navigation links should be the first link on a page
A skip navigation link was detected but it was not the first link on the page. Unless it is the first link then it may defeat the point for users.
W852
US-508-o: Skip navigation links should not be hidden
Hidden skip navigation links are not accessible for keyboard users. You should consider replacing this with a visible link and using CSS to hide it until the tab key is used.
E828
US-508-p: Do not create pages that refresh
Until user agents provide the ability to stop the refresh, do not create periodically auto-refreshing pages.
E842
US-508-p: You should not use a non-zero page redirect
Until user agents provide the ability to stop auto-redirect, do not use mark-up to redirect pages automatically.