Required audio controls
Silktide finds pages that play audio and asks you to confirm listeners can pause or stop it, or control its volume. This matters most when audio starts playing automatically.
Why this matters
Audio that plays without a stop control is more than an annoyance. People using a listen to the page being spoken aloud - competing audio can drown out their screen reader entirely, making the page impossible to use. It also disrupts people with attention or cognitive difficulties, and anyone in a quiet environment. WCAG success criterion 1.4.2 (, the most basic tier of ) requires that audio playing automatically for more than three seconds can be paused, stopped, or muted independently of the system volume.
How to fix it
This check is a prompt to review the audio on each flagged page:
- Avoid autoplaying audio at all - the safest and most user-friendly option.
- If audio must autoplay for more than three seconds, provide a visible control near the start of the page to pause or stop it, or an independent volume control that includes mute.
- For embedded players, make sure controls are enabled:
<!-- Autoplaying audio with no way to stop it -->
<audio src="theme.mp3" autoplay></audio>
<!-- Fixed: user can pause, stop, and adjust the volume -->
<audio src="theme.mp3" controls></audio>
Once you are satisfied the page is fine, the finding.
How Silktide tests this
- Look for audio players (
<audio>elements) in each page's . - Flag each page that contains one, so you can confirm the audio can be paused, stopped, or muted. Silktide cannot automatically judge whether the controls provided are adequate or how long autoplaying audio lasts.
Troubleshooting
The audio doesn't autoplay
If the audio only plays when a visitor chooses to play it, and the player has normal controls, the page passes the underlying requirement - approve the finding.
Audio embedded another way
Only <audio> elements are detected. Audio played through video players or
custom scripts is not flagged by this check, so review those manually.