• Success Criterion 4.1.2
  • Conformance level A

Live Value Update With No Way for Screen Readers to Detect It

4.1.2 — Name, Role, Value

Scenario

Setting

A bank's mobile money-transfer screen

What’s wrong

Live-updating values (counters, cart totals) changing without any programmatic notification path where the control's value is the thing changing.

Example

Here's what happens on a bank's mobile money-transfer screen: live-updating values (counters, cart totals) changing without any programmatic notification path where the control's value is the thing changing.

Why it matters

Screen-reader and voice-control users who can operate only what the accessibility tree exposes. Here, on a bank's mobile money-transfer screen, the result is they hit a dead end with no way forward.

How to test

Change a control's value (e.g., a cart total, a counter) and check whether a screen reader is informed via appropriate role/value semantics or a live region — silent updates fail.

How to fix

Expose value changes programmatically (proper role with value semantics, or a live region (code that makes screen readers announce updates) announcing the update).

Outcome

After the fix, the same visitor to a bank's mobile money-transfer screen can now move past the barrier without workarounds.

Who is affected

Screen-reader and voice-control users who can operate only what the accessibility tree exposes.

Learn more

Related scenarios