Audits

The Texas Cybersecurity Framework (TCF), developed by the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) with help from government and private sectors, aims to manage cybersecurity risks effectively based on business needs without adding extra regulations. Aligned with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) framework, it includes five key functions: Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover. These functions contain 42 security control objectives to help organizations manage cybersecurity risks. The framework also assesses the maturity of each security control, from basic practices to optimized processes.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) or the US Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) might audit a university because of a complaint or randomly under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). These audits can be a learning opportunity. They usually take about a year, involving close cooperation with the auditors.

The process starts with a meeting to explain expectations, including Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Throughout the audit, various aspects are checked, like whether fonts are easy to read, text color contrasts well with the background, images have appropriate alternative text, content can be accessed using a keyboard, videos have captions, and everything remains readable and navigable when magnified to 200%. Some tests are automated, but others need manual review.

The audit also looks at whether there's a way for people to give feedback and if there's a documented process for fixing access issues.

It might take four months to document what's inaccessible and how it will be fixed. Additional guidance is provided, including addressing issues like inaccessible PDF documents. This process includes reviewing digital content from subcontractors, like food services or college stores, who provide information to students through other digital resources the university uses.