Animated image may need a way to pause

Why does it matter?

Animated GIF, PNG and WebP images often loop forever with no way to stop them, which can distract or unsettle people with vestibular and attention disorders. Fast ones can also flash.

Who it affects: Deaf and hard-of-hearing people, screen reader users whose speech is drowned out by audio, and people with vestibular or attention disorders affected by motion.

What does Lumtera flag?

For images in your uploads folder, Lumtera opens the file and counts its frames: a GIF with more than one frame, an animated PNG (APNG) or an animated WebP is a review item, because only a person can tell how long it plays and whether the page offers a pause control. Single-frame images are not reported. A GIF that cannot be read, such as one on another site or a CDN, is a tip based on its file name. Icon-sized images (48 pixels or less) and hidden images are skipped, and every size listed in srcset is checked.

Check ID animated-gif — use it to filter the content report or with wp lumtera issues --rule.

How do I fix it in WordPress?

If the GIF moves for more than five seconds, replace it with a still image, a GIF that stops after a few loops, or a Video block with "Playback controls" turned on so visitors can pause it. If it is a still image, dismiss this item.

Example

<img src="celebration.gif" alt="Confetti">

<video src="celebration.mp4" controls muted loop aria-label="Confetti"></video>

How do I check the fix?

1. Update the post. The issue disappears from the Lumtera Accessibility sidebar on the next check, and from the site report on the next scan.
2. Play the page with the sound off, then with a screen reader on. Speech should be captioned, nothing should play sound by itself, and anything that moves should be stoppable.