Get up and running with Silktide, your new accessibility scanning platform, in just a few simple steps.
What is Silktide?
Silktide automatically scans your Sites@UMBC website for accessibility issues, helping you identify and fix barriers that might prevent people from accessing your content. It tests against WCAG 2.2 standards and provides clear guidance on how to make improvements.
Step 1: Request Access
Were you already a Monsido user?
Skip to Step 2.
New to accessibility scanning?
- Go to umbc.edu/request/
- Select Silktide Accessibility Scanning
- Choose “USER ACCOUNTS: Get access to Silktide for my website(s)”
- Submit your request
You’ll receive an email when your account is ready.
Step 2: Log In and Complete Training
Log In
- Visit https://login.silktide.com/
- Use your UMBC account and password (single sign-on)
Complete Required Training
When you first log in, you’ll have access to training materials but not yet your full website reports. This is normal!
- Click Academy in the top menu
- Click Courses in the sub-menu
- Complete “Getting started with Silktide” (21 minutes)
- Complete “The Accessibility Module” (11 minutes)
- Take notes on key concepts as you go
Request Your Upgrade
After finishing the training:
- Go to umbc.edu/request/
- Select Silktide Accessibility Scanning
- Choose “TRAINING: I have completed the Silktide proficiency training and am ready for Silktide access”
- Submit your request
We’ll verify your training and upgrade you to full access within 1-2 business days.
Step 3: View Your Accessibility Report
Once upgraded to “Sites Admin” role:
- Log in to Silktide
- Click on your website name
- Click “Accessibility” in the left menu
- Click “Checks” to see your prioritized list of issues
Understanding Your Report
Good news: Your report has been customized to show issues with mostly with your content, not template elements like headers and footers (we manage those centrally). Head to this wiki page to see a few checks we recommend you ignore.
Your report includes:
- Overview: Your overall accessibility score and compliance level
- Checks: Specific issues to fix, prioritized by impact
- Pages: Which pages have issues
- Decisions: Track what you’ve reviewed and addressed
Reading a Check
Each accessibility check shows:
- What the issue is (in plain english)
- Why it matters for accessibility
- How to fix it with step-by-step instructions
- Which pages are affected
- Often includes a video tutorial
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