• Success Criterion 3.3.2
  • Conformance level A

CAPTCHA Field With No Instructions on What to Do

3.3.2 — Labels or Instructions

Scenario

Setting

A car-rental site's checkout flow

What’s wrong

CAPTCHA/challenge inputs with no instruction on what to do.

Example 

<img src="captcha.png" alt="captcha">
<input id="captcha-answer">
<!-- no text says what to type: the letters shown, a sum, or something else -->

Why it matters

A renter can't tell if they should type the distorted letters, solve a math problem, or click a checkbox, so the booking stalls at the last step.

How to test

Look at a CAPTCHA/challenge field: if there's no instruction telling the user what to do, it fails.

How to fix

Always pair a challenge image with instructions stating exactly what response is expected.

<img src="captcha.png" alt="Distorted text reading 4 F Q 9">
<label for="captcha-answer">Type the four characters shown above</label>
<input id="captcha-answer">

Outcome

The renter types the four characters correctly and finishes booking the car without a second guess.

Who is affected

Screen reader users who hear only the word 'captcha' with no task description, and first-time users unfamiliar with the challenge format.

Learn more

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