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Cornell University

Web Accessibility Reviews

All Guidelines

85

Users are not required to refill the same information in the same process unless it is available as a selection, is essential, is ensuring security, or the original information is no longer valid.

WGAC 2 criterion 3.3.7 Redundant Entry (A)
Category Forms and Inputs
ACT Rules

WCAG 2 criterion

3.3.7 Redundant Entry (Level A)

Tools and requirements

  • Manual Evaluation

Test procedure

This criterion applies to forms where one "process" is being achieved. This means that it will apply to a singular webform or a series of webforms that perform the same ultimate objective. For example, a form asking for information when signing up for a newsletter will not have any influence on a form asking for information about registering for a class. However, a series of forms (perhaps a 2 or 3 step form on 2 or 3 different pages) asking for information about registering for a class would be treated as one process, and each form in the process would apply to this rule.

A process will "reset" if a user were to leave the session and return – there is no requirement for information previously entered in a canceled process to be preserved or made available to the user. However, a single process may involve multiple domains and not have the requirements of this success criterion "reset." (notably if a user is temporarily sent off-site for payment processing, and returned afterward).

Within a single process, the user can not be prompted for the same information more than once. (e.g., a process may not ask for the user's email address more than once.) If a process does ask for the same information more than once, that information must be automatically filled in by the website or be "available to select". (Available to select in this context means that there has to be a mechanism such as having the option available in a drop-down, having a checkbox that will auto-populate information, or having text on the page that can be copied into the form. All of these must be on the same page.)

There are important limited exceptions to the rule. These include

  • Asking for a password more than once for security purposes.
  • Preventing a password field from being copyable (for a "re-enter your password" field for example) for security purposes.
  • Asking for the same information again if the previous information is no longer valid.

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