Elements must only use permitted ARIA attributes

Rule ID: aria-prohibited-attr
Ruleset: axe-core 4.8
User Impact: Serious
Guidelines: WCAG 2.1 (A), WCAG 2.0 (A), WCAG 2.2 (A), EN 301 549

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Compliance Data & Impact

User Impact

Serious
▼
Minor
Critical

Disabilities Affected

  • Blind
  • Deafblind
  • Mobility

Standard(s)

  • WCAG 2.1 (A)
  • WCAG 2.0 (A)
  • WCAG 2.2 (A)
  • EN 301 549

WCAG Success Criteria [WCAG 2.1 (A)]

  • 4.1.2: MUST: Name, Role, Value

WCAG Success Criteria [WCAG 2.0 (A)]

  • 4.1.2: MUST: Name, Role, Value

WCAG Success Criteria [WCAG 2.2 (A)]

  • 4.1.2: MUST: Name, Role, Value

EN 301 549 Guidelines

  • 9.4.1.2: MUST: Name, Role, Value

How to Fix the Problem

Prohibited attributes are often used in an attempt to communicate information that then ends up ignored by screen readers and other assistive technologies. If the information conveyed is not important, the attribute can be ignored. More commonly though the information will need to be communicated, so instead of removing the prohibited attribute, consider one of the following:

  • Change the role to one on which the attribute is not prohibited
  • Provide the information as text in the page.
  • Move the attribute to a different element that does support it.

Why it Matters

Using ARIA attributes in roles where they are prohibited can mean that important information is not communicated to users of assistive technologies. assistive technologies may also attempt to compensate for the issue, resulting in inconsistent and confusing behavior of these tools.

Rule Description

Not all ARIA role-attribute combinations are valid. This Rule checks that noe of the attributes used with a particular role are listed as "prohibited" for that role in the latest version of WAI-ARIA.

The aria-label and aria-labelledby attributes are prohibited on presentation and none roles, as well as on text-like roles such as code, insertion, strong, etc.

The Algorithm (in simple terms)

Check that each ARIA attribute used is not described as prohibited for that element's role in the WAI-ARIA specification .

Resources

Deque University Course Pages (subscription required)

Contribute to axe-core on GitHub

Other Resources

You may also want to check out these other resources.

Refer to the complete list of axe 4.8 rules.

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