Categories
captcha gov visual

Rock bottom for Captcha, White House

Unbelievable and embarrassing. Is this a new low for CAPTCHA and also for the White House? Let me explain.

In order to sign an online petition by the White House to make books globally accessible to the blind, one must register an account. The fail point is that to register, one must complete a Captcha and the audio version is indecipherable. Therefore, blind folks cannot sign a petition advocating equality for the blind!

A very sad irony.

Here’s an example of the audio Captcha required to decipher in order to register to complete the petition. Because it’s impossible to decipher, the website does not meet Section 508 requirements as the White House claims.

Unfortunately there is still no clear solution to the Captcha accessibility and usability issues. For now it seems a combination of other techniques (see links below) is the best way to go.

Press links:

Articles on Captcha alternatives: