Do not provide text alternatives for decorative images

[joaooliveira]

Why is this important?

A decorative image is normally added only to add a visual aesthetic to a website and provides no useful contextual information for a page. Adding an alt text to a decorative image is an accessibility issue because it will provide information to a screen reader user that does not add value and can confuse the user.

Before deciding if an image is decorative do review what the image is and if it can provide any useful information. Images with text or pictures of objects, places and people can provide value while graphics such as lines and borders do not.

How can I resolve this issue?

Remove the description in the alt text and leave it empty (alt="")

What topics do this checkpoint affect?

Accessibility (WCAG 2.0, 1.1.1), Legal

Can you explain how this checkpoint works?

The checkpoint examines the page and reports if any decorative images have an empty alt tag.

This checkpoint will detect commonly named decorative images such as 'spacer.gif', and alt text containing only words such as 'blank','bullet','line','image','spacer'.

If there are further decorative images you would like the checkpoint to recognize then please contact the Crownpeak DQM Support Team and they will be happy to help you and configure the checkpoint.

References

• Understanding SC 1.1.1
• F39: Failure of Success Criterion 1.1.1