Missing Video Captions

Missing video captions occur when prerecorded video content with audio does not include synchronized text captions. WCAG Success Criterion 1.2.2 (Level A) requires that captions are provided for all prerecorded audio content in synchronized media. Captions must convey not only speech but also meaningful sound effects, speaker identification, and musical cues that are necessary to understand the content.

Captions differ from subtitles in important ways. Subtitles are translations of dialogue for viewers who speak a different language. Captions include all audio information: dialogue, speaker identification, sound effects ("[door slams]"), and background sounds ("[soft music playing]"). This distinction matters because deaf and hard-of-hearing users need all audio information, not just dialogue.

Auto-generated captions from platforms like YouTube are a starting point but are not sufficient for WCAG compliance. Auto-captions typically have an error rate of 10-30%, miss punctuation and formatting, fail to identify speakers, and completely omit non-speech audio. WCAG requires accurate, synchronized captions that faithfully represent the audio content.

Approximately 466 million people worldwide have disabling hearing loss, according to the WHO. For deaf users, uncaptioned video content is completely inaccessible -- they cannot access any of the audio information. For hard-of-hearing users, captions are essential for understanding speech, especially in noisy environments or when audio quality is poor.

Beyond hearing disabilities, captions benefit a remarkably broad audience. Studies show that 80% of people who use captions are not deaf or hard of hearing. Captions help non-native speakers follow dialogue, allow viewing in sound-sensitive environments (offices, libraries, public transport), and improve comprehension and retention for all viewers.

In educational and training contexts, missing captions can constitute discrimination under disability rights laws. Videos used for employee training, educational courses, or public communications are required to be captioned in many jurisdictions.

Scrutia identifies all video elements and embedded video players on your pages. It checks for the presence of <track> elements with kind="captions", verifies that the caption file (WebVTT or SRT) is accessible and non-empty, and flags videos that rely solely on auto-generated captions. The report lists each uncaptioned video with its URL and location on the page.