Accepted standards

Accepted standards are agreed ways of doing things that have built up over time because people have found they give good results. They are often called best practice. No single law or organisation creates them: they grow from experience and are reshaped as technology changes. For example, IT teams have learned to test new software on the browsers and devices their staff actually use before rolling it out, rather than assuming it will work everywhere.

Because technology moves on, accepted standards are reviewed and updated regularly. Organisations are expected to follow the current version rather than an old one, and checking for updates is part of keeping a service working well. They are not enforceable by law in themselves: an organisation cannot be fined or prosecuted simply for ignoring one. The consequences are practical instead. A service that breaks an accepted standard may not work for some users, customers may complain, and the organisation's reputation can suffer. A standard can still be written into a contract or into an organisation's own policies, which makes it binding in practice for that organisation.

To tell standards apart, ask what backs them up. Law is enforceable and breaking it can lead to penalties such as fines. An accepted standard rests on agreement and expectation, so ignoring it usually costs an organisation trust and customers rather than leading to a court case. WCAG is a well-known accepted standard covering web accessibility.