By: Kristina Launey and Minh Vu
Seyfarth Synopsis: The FTC issued a Decision and Order prohibiting accessibility plug-in/Widget vendor AccessiBe from making misleading claims and to pay $1 million.
As the number of website accessibility lawsuit filings have exceeded 2,200 per year since 2018, so too has the list of companies offering solutions for making websites accessible to users who are blind or have other disabilities. Because the process of auditing a website for accessibility issues and then remediating them by making actual changes to the source code can be expensive and time consuming, a number of businesses have emerged with quick and inexpensive “solutions” using overlays, widgets or plug-ins that claim to automatically make websites accessible to individuals with disabilities. The actual efficacy of these methods or tools, as well as the related marketing claims of these vendors, have been the topic of heated debate in the digital accessibility community in recent years. Many businesses – lured by the promise of an inexpensive solution – have paid for these automated accessibility tools even while some plaintiffs and advocacy groups insist that they do not work.
One of the most visible vendors in this space is accessiBe, which was the subject of a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigation. On April 21, 2025, the FTC issued a Decision and Order (the “Order”) which, among other things, orders accessiBe to pay $1M and prohibits it from representing that its automated products can make any website compliant, or ensure continued compliance, with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), unless it has the evidence to support its claims. The Order also prohibits accessiBe from misrepresenting that statements in reviews, blog posts, or articles about its automated products are independent opinions by impartial users or organizations providing objective information. The Order remains in effect for twenty (20) years, during which time accessiBe must file annual compliance reports with the FTC.
The Order resolves a detailed 27-page Complaint issued by the FTC which charged accessiBe with violating the Federal Trade Commission Act by falsely claiming that accessiBe’s widget (accessWidget) made all user websites WCAG-compliant. According to the Complaint, accessiBe claimed that “installing accessWidget’s ‘one line of code’ makes a website compliant with 30% of WCAG’s requirements immediately and initiates an AI process that makes the website fully compliant with the remaining 70% of WCAG requirements within 48 hours.” The Complaint alleged that “[c]ontrary to accessiBe’s promises, in a number of instances accessWidget fails or has failed to make basic and essential website components like menus, headings, tables, images, recordings, and more, compliant with WCAG and accessible to persons with disabilities.” The Complaint further stated that accessiBe “made these advertising claims on its website and social media, as well as in paid advertisements” knowing that they “were deceptively formatted to appear like impartial reviews and articles.” The Complaint contains detailed examples of the alleged violations. The FTC also blogged about the issue, noting “It’s advertising law 101: before you claim your product can perform a certain task, you need evidence it will work as promised.”
This development confirms our longstanding belief that businesses need to consult with counsel with experience in digital accessibility before investing in an accessibility solution, or hiring an accessibility consultant.