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I have read a couple times now that Websites are obligated to provide an alternative login page when their login form uses Javascript. I have not been able to find much resources on the matter though. (Google likes to present me with websites that discuss legal information that happen to have a login feature.)

Are there any legal requirements for a website to have an alternative to a Javascript login form? I'm interested in answers from all over the world.

Jeroen
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  • Are you asking for a law that specifically mentions Java and specifically requires that a nonJava log in screen be available? – jqning Jun 01 '15 at 17:22
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    @JamesKeuning Not necessarily, any law which might have as a result that the website is forced to provide a non-javascript alternative would suffice. I find it hard to imagine a law would mention JavaScript itself. – Jeroen Jun 01 '15 at 17:38
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    You should either specify a jurisdiction, or explicitly said that you care for answers about random jurisdiction, or whatever. Not specifying anything at all is definitely bad, since you'll get random answers anyway. – o0'. Jun 01 '15 at 18:08
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    @Lohoris Fair point, edited the question. – Jeroen Jun 01 '15 at 18:27
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    Is there any website you're required to transact with at all? With the possible exception of government sites, in countries with freedom of association, if you don't want to use a particular website for any reason you should not be legally required to. – WBT Jan 06 '16 at 19:55
  • @WBT Not sure why that is relevant. Could you elaborate? – Jeroen Jan 07 '16 at 00:15
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    It would suggest the answer is no and raise doubts about whether or not a free government could reasonably impose a requirement about the specific technology to be used or not used for an above-board and voluntary interaction, not directly relevant to a class of people legally protected from discrimination, and not related to a protected technology. – WBT Jan 07 '16 at 00:21

2 Answers2

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In the UK, the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 includes provisions which are thought to apply to websites, although as far as I know there is no case law on the matter.

If a website's use of JavaScript makes it inaccessible to users with some disability, it may fall foul of the DDA. However, there is no law specifically requiring JavaScript-free versions of web pages.

Flup
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In the United States, AFAIK there is no legal requirement to provide an alternative to a JavaScript form.

Although, from a UX perspective. If you use security extensions like NoScript. You would need to allow the site to run JavaScript on the client before you would be able to login. So it is best to use other methods to authenticate your user.

Digital fire
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