WCAG stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and is among the most influential protocols shaping web accessibility policies. Developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), WCAG was created in 1994 at MIT's Computer Science Laboratory during a period of rapid global web activity growth.

One of W3C's most important goals was to standardize web protocols, making websites and web tools compatible with each other. W3C standards are reviewed, tested, and analyzed multiple times before approval. Generally, W3C standards have three levels ranging from A to AAA.

WCAG 2.1 is a long and complex document containing many different items and requirements. However, all of them are built upon four fundamental principles: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. The first step to complying with WCAG is to understand these principles.

Perceivability refers to how users perceive content through their senses of sight, hearing, and touch. Operability concerns how a person uses the site. Understandable sites are designed in a way that everyone can comprehend. A robust site uses clean HTML and CSS code and should be compatible with assistive tools that people with disabilities use to navigate online.

Although WCAG is not a set of rules enforceable by law, many governments have adopted it as a standard for accessibility regulations. In fact, complying with WCAG is the best way to align with most laws worldwide.

Ignoring WCAG brings the risk of legal action because it is considered the most reliable and effective set of accessibility standards globally and is implemented to varying degrees by most major countries. You can't go wrong by adhering to WCAG. Compliance not only is a legal necessity but also ensures that every user gets the most out of their web experience.

When a website is perceivable, users can perceive the content through their senses of sight, hearing, and touch. For example, features like captions for videos, color contrast, text size and spacing, and fonts make reading easier. Operability focuses on how users navigate the site. People with limited motor abilities should be able to navigate the site using only a keyboard or assistive technologies.

Understandable websites do not use technical terms or complex jargon and offer simple instructions that everyone can follow. Robust websites use clean HTML and CSS code that conform to recognized standards and are compatible with assistive tools that people with disabilities use to navigate online.

Many governments have adopted WCAG as the standard for accessibility regulations. In the United States, the updated version of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act came into effect in 2018. This law requires that online platforms of federal agencies or any organization receiving federal funding be accessible to all users. The EU mandated WCAG 2.0 for all official EU sites in 2010 and expanded this requirement in 2016 to include all public sector web platforms and to encompass WCAG 2.1.

In Canada, the Accessible Canada Act (ACA) was adopted in 2019. The ACA requires many public and private sector sites to become accessible in compliance with WCAG. Australia, Israel, and many other countries have also adopted WCAG as the basis of their accessibility laws.

Failing to comply with WCAG not only brings the risk of legal action but also prevents various users from fully benefiting from their web experience. Compliance with WCAG is critically important to ensure that all users can access and benefit from your web content.

Optimizing your website according to WCAG standards may be sufficient to meet legal requirements and reduce the risk of lawsuits; however, this should not be the only step taken in the name of accessibility. Compliance with WCAG is becoming even more important in an expanding digital world where it is an ethical obligation for an organization to ensure fair and equal access to its digital services and products for everyone.

Moreover, complying with WCAG is an opportunity to reach more people with your website and serve a wider user base. An accessible website allows everyone, regardless of their disabilities, to benefit from your web content. This enables you to reach more potential customers, enhance your brand reputation, and improve the overall user experience.

In conclusion, WCAG is an important tool designed to ensure that all users can benefit from a website. It not only meets legal requirements but also enables everyone to be active and included online. Compliance with WCAG is a significant step toward a fairer and more accessible digital world. Therefore, adherence to WCAG is not just a requirement but also a responsibility.

There are several ways to comply with WCAG. Here are some strategies to enhance the accessibility of your website:

The content of your website should be easily perceivable by users with different abilities. Your content should offer customizable features like different color settings, text sizes, and font styles. Additionally, it should provide assistive features like captions or alternative texts for visual content.

All features of your website should be usable with various assistive technologies (e.g., screen readers, keyboard navigation, etc.). This allows users with limited motor skills to continue navigating your site and performing certain actions.

Users of your website should always understand what they are doing and how the site works. This means providing consistent navigation features, clear instructions, and feedback that helps users understand what they are doing and what they need to do.

Your website needs to be compatible with various browsers and assistive technologies. This requires using clean, error-free coding practices and design techniques that conform to standards.

Compliance with WCAG is not just about meeting legal requirements and reducing legal risks. A website that complies with WCAG allows users with various abilities to benefit from web content and enrich their online experiences. Compliance with WCAG plays a significant role in creating a fairer and more inclusive digital world where everyone has equal rights in the online space. Therefore, adherence to WCAG is not just an obligation but also a responsibility. All website owners and developers should carry the responsibility of making the online world more accessible and understandable for everyone by implementing WCAG principles.

WCAG plays an important role in laws and regulations worldwide. Here is the impact of WCAG on accessibility laws around the world:

In the U.S., Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, which came into effect in 2018, was updated. This law requires that online platforms of federal agencies or any organization receiving federal funding be accessible to all users. The updated rules require these sites to comply with WCAG 2.0 Level AA.

In 2010, EU authorities mandated WCAG 2.0 Level AA for all official EU sites and expanded this in 2016 to include all public sector web platforms and WCAG 2.1. Additionally, the EU adopted WCAG 2.0 as the standard for the new European Accessibility Act.

In 2019, the Accessible Canada Act (ACA) was adopted by the federal government in Canada. The ACA requires various public and private sector sites to become accessible in compliance with WCAG.

In Australia, the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) came into effect in 1992. This law aimed to eliminate barriers to access for people with disabilities in real-world workplaces. Over time, the government's Human Rights Commission and other competent authorities in Australia stated that the DDA also covers online services.

In Israel, an accessibility law called IS 5568 came into effect in 2017. IS 5568 requires most businesses to make their sites accessible according to WCAG.

Ignoring WCAG carries the risk of legal action because it forms the backbone of accessibility laws in most countries and is considered the most reliable and effective set of accessibility standards worldwide. When you comply with WCAG, the chance of making a mistake decreases.

In conclusion, although WCAG does not have legal authority, it has achieved global recognition as the most important set of accessibility standards and is implemented to varying degrees by most major countries. Therefore, adhering to these standards when designing or developing a website not only allows you to fulfill legal obligations but also ensures that your website is accessible to users with various abilities.

In Turkey, web accessibility is still a widely discussed topic. The country's technology laws and regulations are quite new compared to many other countries and are still developing. However, the government and the private sector are taking significant steps to enhance digital accessibility.

Turkey has digitized most of its public services, and many of these services are now offered online. Ensuring that these services are accessible requires the implementation of WCAG principles.

However, most websites in the private sector still do not fully comply with WCAG standards. This can cause significant challenges, especially for users with disabilities. Creating websites that comply with WCAG principles ensures that all users can get the most out of these sites.

In addition, companies and organizations in Turkey can increase awareness and provide more training on compliance with WCAG. Adherence to WCAG principles is not just a technical obligation but also an ethical responsibility to ensure that all users can benefit from online services.

In conclusion, compliance with WCAG should be an important goal for websites and digital services in Turkey. This not only enables users with disabilities to benefit from online services but also creates a better online experience for all users. Compliance with WCAG is important not just to meet laws but also to make the digital world fairer and more inclusive for everyone.