Latest research has found the biggest tech companies in the USA are failing to meet the necessary standards to ensure their websites meet ADA regulations
NEW YORK , USA, March 29, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ — Latest research by InsurTech company AAAtraq has found that almost all of the biggest tech companies in the USA are failing to meet the necessary standards to ensure their websites meet ADA compliance regulations.
“This degree of failure calls into question whether risk officers within NASDAQ companies have a complete picture of how comprehensively their online content is adhering to ADA requirements,” said Lawrence Shaw, CEO of AAAtraq.
AAAtraq analysed 85 NASDAQ company websites for content failure and found that 84% are at high risk, with a further 15% showing a medium risk. Only Alphabet is demonstrating a high degree of compliance with the ADA.
“We’ve been auditing the NASDAQ 100 for the past four quarters and the rankings haven’t changed significantly,” added Shaw. “Perhaps it’s time for executives and risk managers to take more responsibility for understanding whether their websites meet ADA requirements, rather than relying on what they are being told by digital teams or external suppliers.”
The findings come despite many sites featuring accessibility statements claiming compliance whilst not achieving the necessary online standards.
Increasing emphasis on executive responsibility is also emerging with companies such as Apple linking executive pay to performance against issues such as accessibility.
With the COVID-19 pandemic increasing the importance of digital transactions and interaction to companies and their customers across the US, websites have become the predominant method for those with disabilities to access goods, services and information.
“Complying with ADA standards is critical to ensuring an organization does not discriminate online,” continued Shaw. “At the start of 2020 a website was part of a business. Now it is the business.”
“There needs to be a change in mind set for many firms. If you were designing a new building for your company you would ensure it was accessible for all. A website is an increasingly important part of the way clients and the public access a company’s services and the same level of attention to compliance needs to be applied online as with physical workplaces.”
“Companies need to treat ADA compliance as a risk management issue and ask how they are measuring accessibility risk and mitigating the impact of content failure. We have seen a significant increase in the level of website accessibility litigation with compliance the only real defence.”
Shaw added while it is understandable for many businesses the focus for their website is its commercial applications. But companies ignore ADA compliance accessibility at their peril, leaving the door open for litigation and the damage to the brand it would cause.
“As the world emerges from the COVID pandemic there is already a move to greater levels of remote and digital working. The need to take digital compliance seriously is even more pressing and an issue that should be high on the agenda of risk managers up and down the US,” concluded Shaw.
ENDS
For more information visit www.AAAtraq.com
About AAAtraq
AAAtraq (www.aaatraq.com) is an InsurTech solution to shield organizations from unnecessary legal aggression and then remove unnecessary cost, reducing the time it takes to understand, achieve and maintain ADA website compliance.
Our intelligence-driven automation provides a strategic, principle-driven pathway with clear timescales and milestones to compliance along with $10,000 (rising to $50,000 as clients progress) of litigation cost coverage within just one month, all for a $99/month subscription.
Ongoing staff support, digital supply chain oversight and monthly reporting replace complexity with confidence. AAAtraq, for those managing risk, not digital.
Lawrence Shaw
AAAtraq
630-933-1338
email us here
