Definition: Section 508 is an addition to the Workforce Rehabilitation Act that requires electronic and information technology developed by, purchased by, or associated with Federal Agencies to be fully assessable to persons with disabilities.
For example, persons with vision and hearing impairments would be able to access and understand text content and images if they were accompanied by descriptive tags, and videos if they were accompanied by text transcripts or closed captions. Persons with physical disabilities unable to use a mouse can successfully navigate websites if they provide simple navigation by using solely a keyboard.
Currently, Section 508 Compliance is only mandatory for government-affiliated websites, but eBusiness and other website owners are starting to do their part to contribute to total online accessibility.
To learn more, visit our Section 508 Compliance page.