The internet affords us with opportunities never known before in human history: apps give us endless insight into our lives and social media connects us with people around the world. The internet and digital products have been incredibly useful for those living with disabilities and impairments, too, where assistive technologies can be used to improve their daily lives. But for all the benefits of the internet and digital products, they’re only useful to those living with disabilities when digital accessibility is considered.
In honor of Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD), we’re focusing on why digital accessibility is essential to creating strong, inclusive cybersecurity measures. We’ll also explore the specific ways you can make your cybersecurity more inclusive and accessible, like introducing digital products and tools which aid users with disabilities and impairments.
The state of global digital accessibility
One out of every four Americans and an estimated 1.3 billion people globally (16% of the global population) live with a significant disability. However, although people with disabilities make up a significant portion of the population, most websites are not built with these users’ needs considered.
WebAIM found that 95.9% of website homepages have a significant Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) failure. This tells us most sites lack basic digital accessibility: content and information that users with different disabilities can interact with. For example, a user with visual impairment, like low vision, may not be able to use a site because it lacks assistive technologies like screen readers, alt text, audio descriptions, or magnification capabilities.
While this lack of digital accessibility is frustrating for everyday people living with disabilities trying to navigate the internet, it’s further amplified for employees living with impairments. Inaccessibility is a roadblock to their work, one which impacts their productivity, satisfaction, and an organization’s cybersecurity.
Cybersecurity, disabilities, and digital accessibility
Cybersecurity tools and initiatives are designed to improve user security without impacting the user experience. In some cases, like LastPass, a cybersecurity tool can enhance both security and the user experience. To be as effective as possible, cybersecurity practices must prioritize the needs of all their users, no matter their ability and experience.
This is why it’s necessary for businesses to consider and address the needs of employees and users living with disabilities and impairments.
Think of it this way: if you’re creating a cybersecurity tool or initiative, it’s something you want to make as wide-reaching as possible, something that addresses the needs of all potential users. A tool with numerous web accessibility issues and lacking assistive technologies for webpages and apps is a hindrance to your success. Moreover, it’s an impediment to promoting better cybersecurity practices because you’ve forgotten to consider accessibility needs.
With more accessible, inclusive cybersecurity tools, users and employees will be more likely to adopt them and practice better cybersecurity habits, thus putting your business in a better position.
Common accessibility features
Incorporating assistive technologies into cybersecurity tools is a matter of making the effort, taking the time to prioritize their inclusion. Thankfully the WCAG’s conformance levels are clearly defined, which gives you an idea of what sort of accessibility features should be featured on your site. But where do you start?
Here are a few accessibility features and assistive technologies you can implement to help employees and users living with disabilities, making it easier for them to use and understand your cybersecurity tools.
- Color contrast: Higher color contrast is an essential of accessibility standards as it helps people with low vision and visual impairments to better differentiate the various elements on a screen. High color contrast does this by making it easier to distinguish different colors from one another, which makes text stand out from other visual elements. It’s also useful for people using devices in well-lit spaces – where glare can occur. This is why most UI designs use black text on a white background: the high contrast makes it easier to see and digest the text.
- Writing in plain English: as a rule of thumb, all writing – especially consumer- and user-focused writing – should use clear and simple language. It’s paramount for various accessibility reasons, but the primary reason is that it makes reading easy. This is especially true for people that live with learning disabilities, cognitive impairments, low literacy levels, and conditions like dyslexia and autism. It’s always best to write clearly: it’s the simplest way for people to understand what you’re saying, especially if you’re encouraging better cybersecurity habits.
- Accessible fonts: accessible fonts, like high color contrast, make it easier for people with visual impairments to better engage with cybersecurity technology. An accessible font is one that can be properly scaled larger or smaller, as needed. They’re also typefaces that are easy to read and have well-defined letters and adequate spacing between letters.
- Screen reader: screen readers convert the visual elements on screen – texts, buttons, images – into media people with visual disabilities can easily access and understand, like audio or braille. Clear writing is essential here, as complicated writing will be hard to understand even when translated by a screen reader. It’s also why you need to add alt text for all images posted to sites, social media, and apps, as it allows people with visual disabilities to properly engage with and understand them.
- Language tags: in addition to a screen reader, you’ll also want to insert language tags throughout site and app components. This is especially useful, as language tags will allow a user to choose a language prior to engaging with content through a screen reader, whether it be content on a page or a navigational menu.
- Keyboard navigation: keyboard navigation allows users to navigate cybersecurity technology without a mouse or screen reader. Some people living with physical disabilities and impairments prefer using keyboard navigation to move through an app, website, or document, so it’s important to think of their accessibility needs when drafting your UI.
Prioritize digital accessibility in your cybersecurity program
Any security expert will tell you that design and accessibility are essential to protecting your organization. By taking the needs of people living with disabilities into account, you’re prioritizing the basics of accessibility standards, ensuring your technology and initiatives are easy to read, easy to differentiate visually, and translatable to the needs of anyone – whether that’s translating to other languages, screen readers, braille, or sign language. It also includes incorporating additional accessibility basics like closed captioning for videos, alt text for images, language tags for navigation menus, and more.
For logging in to work tools, a simple accessibility example is as follows: chances are your employees need to input a password to sign into work. Inputting a password repeatedly can be tiresome and frustrating, if not impossible, for some. Rather than putting their security and the security of your organization at risk, you can provide employees with a password management solution, like LastPass, which allows them to log in using a biometric multi-factor authentication method like their fingerprint.
It may not sound like much, but digital accessibility goes a long way, meeting the needs of your users and employees while furthering your own security. If you’re unsure where to start or are looking for more concrete digital accessibility guidelines, consider visiting the WebAIM site or reading up on the US Department of Labor’s approach to accessible & inclusive technology.
Start improving digital accessibility in your organization’s cybersecurity program today
This Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD), take the time to increase your team's accessibility awareness, especially when it comes to the cybersecurity technology and tools your organization relies on and deploys. When 1 in 4 Americans live with a disability, with billions more around the world, it’s essential that your business take digital accessibility into account.
By prioritizing accessibility, you’re ensuring more people at your organization will be able to successfully adopt your cybersecurity program. Enabling accessibility features like screen readers, as well as taking high color contrast and accessible fonts into account, will go a long way. Besides providing all employees with the tools they need to effectively work and address cybersecurity protocols, you can heighten your organization’s efficiency and security habits.
If you’re looking for a place to start, choose cybersecurity partners who support digital accessibility standards. By leveraging vendors committed to supporting accessibility, you’re giving users, colleagues, and employees the necessary tools they need to secure themselves while prioritizing the user experience.
Don’t put off cybersecurity or accessibility for one more day. Discover how LastPass helps improve password security throughout your entire business, for every employee, at every access point.
