This translation has not been editorially reviewed yet. The German version is authoritative. Deutsche Fassung
Accessibility
How does a registration go without memorizing and typing?
Remember passwords, type codes, recognize traffic lights in pictures: For people with memory problems, dyslexia, or cognitive limitations, signing up is often the highest hurdle to a website. Level AA (3.3.8, new in WCAG 2.2) prohibits such tests, but allows object recognition and recognition of own content. Level AAA criterion 3.3.9 also removes these exemptions: Registration does not require a cognitive function test unless there is an alternative without or a mechanism that helps.
What the Criterion Requires
No step of registration requires you to remember something, write something off, calculate something or recognize something in pictures, unless there is another registration method without such a test or a tool that will do the test for the visitor. A password field meets this if password manager and paste are allowed; The application is then a confirmation, not a memory test. An image captcha does not fulfill it, not even with object recognition. It fulfills a code from an SMS if it can be inserted or the browser automatically takes over.
Registration types without test
Passkeys: The browser or operating system confirms the identity with fingerprint, face or device lock; Nothing to notice, nothing to type. Magic links: A link by e-mail signs up; The visitor clicks, nothing more. Registration via an existing account (Google, Apple, ID Austria) where the identity was checked there. Password with Password Manager if the field does not block insertion and autocompletion. All four are now available in every browser; The test service itself uses Magic links for the customer area.
This is how we deal with it
The measurement finds login forms, checks if the password field allows insertion and autocompletion, and detects captcha embeds; Passkey and Magic Link offers recognize them by the controls. Whether the registration succeeds consistently without a test, checks a person with a test account. The criterion belongs to the category AAA in knowledge; at level AA the service checks 3.3.8.
Examples
Registration with object recognition
<p>Wählen Sie alle Bilder mit Ampeln.</p>
<!-- auf Stufe AA noch erlaubt --><button type="button" onclick="passkeyAnmeldung()">Mit Passkey anmelden</button>
<p>oder</p>
<form action="/login/magic"><label>E-Mail <input type="email" autocomplete="email"></label><button>Anmeldelink schicken</button></form>Without any cognitive test: passkey, login link or password with allowed password manager.
- In the password field, allow insertion and autocomplete (autocomplete="current-password") without locking by script.
- Offer passkeys or magic links as a login method; Both are included in standard Auth libraries.
- Replace image captchas with invisible procedures or an examination that does not require recognition.
- Leave the code of the two-factor login insertable and use autocomplete="one-time-code" so that the browser takes over.
