Introduction¶

How to do a PDF accessibility scan and request a PDF remediation with Acquia Web Governance. PDF scans are done through a Remediation Quote. Order a list of issues that require attention in the PDF. This service is provided by a third-party provider, CommonLook Clarity:

CommonLook Clarity | PDF Accessibility and Compliance

Choose the type of PDF scan:

1. Scan a PDF file (also known as a “clarity” scan).
2. Request PDF file remediation.

Include PDF files in the scan¶

This section provides instructions on how to do a PDF accessibility scan.

1. Navigate to your domain dashboard.

2. On the top menu bar, click Accessibility (icon of a human figure with outstretched arms).

   

3. The Accessibility summary page opens.

   
4. Click PDFs from the menu on the left side of the page.
5. The list expands with more choices:

   • Internal PDFs: Select this option if the PDF file is uploaded on your site.

     

     Sort the chart with the following options:

     • Pending
     • Reviewed/OK
     • Queued
     • Failed.

   • External PDFs: Select this option if the PDF file is not on your site.

     

     The External PDFs page opens.
     The list shows all external PDF files that you need to check for accessibility issues. The chart gives a graphic view of:

     • PDF files reviewed
     • PDF files pending.
6. Action: Click to expand the list of options.

7. Select Start PDF Accessibility scan: Select to scan this PDF.

   The PDF file moves into the Queued column.

   If the PDF is located externally, select External PDFs: The External PDFs page opens. The chart has the following sorting options:

   • Pending
   • Reviewed/OK.
8. Click a PDF in the list to view the URL and scan information.

The scan results are imported directly into your account and are available through the dashboard.

If the scan is successful and no accessibility errors are found, the PDF is automatically moved to the Reviewed/OK column. Select the PDF to view the results.

If the scan is successful and some accessibility errors are found, the PDF is automatically moved to the Failed column. Click to view the scan results and the issues detected. Repair the errors or use the PDF remediation option as described below in the Remediation Quote instructions, upload the new PDF documents, and then start a new scan.

Here is an example of how the scan report can look:

• Columns are:
  • Name: The name of the error. In this example, the first row is "Alternative Representat.." (truncated).
  • Result_type: The type of error. In this example, the first row is "error".
  • Page_number: The page that the error is on. In this example, the first row is "1".
  • Element_tree_path: How to locate this error directly in the tree path for the report. In this example, the first row is "Annotations->11".
  • Reason: The reason for the error. In this example, the first row is "Link Annotation doesn't..." (truncated).
  • Clarity_comments: Any comments from the CommonLook/Clarity team. In this example, the first row is empty.

Check the scan results¶

To find more details about the PDF from the scan results, the Quality Assurance feature can provide some additional details.

Instructions

1. Navigate to your domain.

2. Click Quality Assurance (the checkbox icon), on the domain dashboard toolbar.

   
3. The Quality Assurance page opens.

4. Click Content with QA Errors from the menu on the left side of the page.

   

   The Content with QA Errors page opens.

   
5. On the menu bar at the top of the chart, click to navigate to PDF Documents.

6. Click a document in the list to view more information about the scan results.

   If the scan is successful and no accessibility errors are found, it is automatically moved to the Reviewed/Ok column. Select the PDF to view the results.

   If the scan is successful and some accessibility errors are found, the PDF is automatically moved to the Failed column. Click to view the scan results and the issues detected. Repair the errors or use the PDF remediation option as described below in the Remediation Quote instructions, upload the new PDF documents, and then start a new scan.

Remediation quote¶

If any PDF files require remediation, this can be requested from within the platform. The remediated documents and accessibility reports are delivered to your email when they are ready. To include the PDF scanning tool, contact Support to upgrade your account.

1. Do an accessibility scan as per the previous section and locate the non-compliant PDF files.

2. Click to select Remediation Quote on the same row as a non-compliant PDF

   This submits an order for remediation of issues that require attention in the PDF. This service is provided by a third party. A dialog box opens with the following text:

   "Document remediation for compliance to WCAG 2.1 AA, Section 508, HHS or PDF/UA accessibility standards. Document remediation requires manual verification and can range in cost. When you submit PDF documents for remediation, we will review the document and give you a firm, fixed price for the remediation. Upon completion of the work, we will also provide a compliance report. We will let you know if there is any Alternative Text (Alt-Text) required for images that are not self-descriptive or any related additional information needed to remediate the document."

   
3. Click OK to confirm.
4. The remediated PDFs are sent to your email when they are finished.
5. Remove the old PDFs from the website and upload the remediated PDFs.
6. Change the status of the PDFs manually to Mark as reviewed. This moves the files to the Reviewed/OK folder in the user interface.

For more information on the PDF accessibility scan service, see:

• PDF remediation quote
• CommonLook

Bulk remediation quotes and PDF accessibility checks¶

For accounts that are upgraded to include the PDF scanning tool, it is possible to do a bulk remediation quote to include all PDFs.

1. Click Accessibility from the domain dashboard.

   
2. Click PDFs from the menu on the left.

3. Click Internal PDFs from the expanded selection.

   
4. Choose one of the following bulk options:
   • Mark all as reviewed: Select this option to mark all PDF files as reviewed.
   • Request PDF accessibility check for all: Select this option to request a PDF accessibility check for all PDF files.
   • Request remediation quote for all: Select this option to request a remediation quote for all PDF files.

Contact Support for more information. PDF tracking allows users to see which files are remediated.

Additional resources¶

For more information, visit CommonLook Clarity | PDF Accessibility and Compliance.