Gap Analysis

Status: ✅ Analysis Complete
Purpose: Identify features NOT YET planned for releases up to V1.0

1. Analysis Framework

1.1 Importance Formula

Importance = f(risk, impact, strategy)

• Risk: What are the consequences if we don't have this feature?
• Impact: How many users affected? How severe?
• Strategy: How well does this align with FactHarbor's mission and strategic goals?

Importance Levels:

• VERY HIGH: Critical to mission, high risk if missing, affects majority of users
• HIGH: Important for success, significant impact, strong strategic alignment
• MEDIUM: Valuable but not critical, moderate impact
• LOW: Nice-to-have, limited impact

1.2 Urgency Formula

Urgency = f(fail fast and learn, legal, promises made)

• Fail fast and learn: Do we need to validate assumptions quickly?
• Legal: Are there legal requirements or external deadlines?
• Promises made: Have we committed this to stakeholders, funders, or partners?

Urgency Levels:

• HIGH: External deadlines, legal requirements, or critical testing needed
• MEDIUM: Strategic opportunity, growing trends, competitive pressure
• LOW: No external pressure, can add anytime

1.3 Context Matters

Important principle: Importance and urgency change based on milestone context.

• POC: Only basic features urgent
• Beta: More features become urgent for user testing
• Release: Legal/compliance becomes critical

Priorities are not absolute - they're contextual.

2. Gap Categories

We identified 15 true gaps (features NOT in current roadmap) across 7 categories:

Category 1: Accessibility & Inclusivity

• Gap 1.1: WCAG 2.1 Compliance
• Gap 1.2: Multilingual Support

Category 2: Platform Integration & Distribution

• Gap 2.1: Browser Extensions
• Gap 2.2: Embeddable Widgets

Category 3: Media Verification

• Gap 3.1: Image Verification
• Gap 3.2: Video Verification
• Gap 3.3: Audio Verification

Category 4: Mobile & Offline Access

• Gap 3.1: Mobile Apps / PWA
• Gap 3.2: Offline Access

Category 5: Education & Media Literacy

• Gap 4.1: Educational Resources
• Gap 4.2: Media Literacy Integration

Category 6: Collaboration & Community

• Gap 5.1: Professional Collaboration Tools
• Gap 5.2: Community Discussion

Category 7: Advanced Features

• Gap 6.1: User Analytics
• Gap 6.2: Personalization

3. Critical Gaps (VERY HIGH Importance)

3.1 Gap: WCAG 2.1 Accessibility Compliance

Status: ❌ Not addressed in current requirements
Importance: VERY HIGH
Urgency: HIGH (legal requirement)

Why Important:

• Risk: CRITICAL
• Legal liability (European Accessibility Act enforced June 28, 2025)
• Lawsuits, fines up to $250,000 (Accessible Canada Act)
• Cannot operate in EU market without compliance
• Retrofitting is 100x more expensive than building in from start
• Impact: 15-20% of population (1+ billion people) excluded without accessibility
• Affects blind, low-vision, deaf, motor impairments, cognitive disabilities
• "86% of companies report improved customer satisfaction after implementing accessibility" (Forrester)
• Strategy: CRITICAL ALIGNMENT
• Mission is "a world where decisions are grounded in evidence" - not "for sighted people only"
• Non-profit public interest mission requires serving ALL publics

Why Urgent:

• Fail fast: HIGH - Legal deadlines approaching (EU Accessibility Act June 2025)
• Legal: CRITICAL - Required by law in EU, Canada, US (Section 508, ADA)
• Promises: HIGH if mission emphasizes "public interest" or "for all"

Missing Requirements:

• WCAG 2.1 Level AA compliance (minimum legal standard)
• Screen reader compatibility
• Keyboard-only navigation
• Sufficient color contrast ratios
• Alternative text for all images
• Closed captions for videos
• Accessible forms and error messages

Recommended:

• NFR14: Accessibility Compliance - Platform must conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards
• NFR15: Assistive Technology Support - Compatible with screen readers, voice navigation, keyboard-only usage
• FR55: Accessibility Settings - User-configurable contrast, text size, reduced motion options

When to Address: Build in from MVP/POC1 - retrofitting is 100x more expensive

Research Evidence:

• "1 in 4 adults in the US has a disability" (CDC 2023)
• "Legal actions increased 14% in 2023" (Forrester accessibility report)
• European Accessibility Act mandatory June 28, 2025

3.2 Gap: Educational Resources & Onboarding

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: VERY HIGH
Urgency: MEDIUM

Why Important:

• Risk: HIGH - Users won't understand methodology, will distrust results
• Impact: VERY HIGH - Affects all users, especially first-time visitors
• Strategy: CRITICAL - Transparency requires education

Why Urgent:

• Fail fast: MEDIUM - Need to test what educational content resonates
• Legal: None
• Promises: HIGH if emphasizing "transparent" methodology

Missing Requirements:

• Interactive first-time user tutorial
• Video explanations of how AKEL works
• Glossary of terms (scenario, verdict, evidence quality)
• FAQ addressing common questions
• Educational resources hub
• Teacher/educator curriculum materials

Recommended:

• UN-34: Learn How to Fact-Check - Educational resources for understanding methodology
• FR67: Onboarding Tutorial - Interactive first-time user walkthrough
• FR68: Educational Resources Hub - Guides, videos, FAQs, glossary
• FR69: Curriculum Materials - Resources for educators to use FactHarbor in classrooms

When to Address: Beta 0 (before public users)

Research Evidence:

• "Users need 3+ exposures to new concept before trusting it" (UX research)
• Educational fact-checking platforms have 3x higher user retention (MediaWise 2024)

4. High Importance Gaps

4.1 Gap: Browser Extensions

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: HIGH
Urgency: MEDIUM

Why Important:

• Risk: MEDIUM - Competitive disadvantage, reduced adoption
• Impact: MEDIUM-HIGH - Significantly improves UX for active fact-checkers
• Strategy: HIGH ALIGNMENT - Meet users where misinformation spreads (in their browsers)

Why Urgent:

• Fail fast: MEDIUM - Should validate that users actually want browser extensions
• Legal: None
• Promises: LOW unless explicitly promised to early adopters

Missing Requirements:

• Chrome/Firefox/Safari browser extensions
• Right-click context menu for selected text
• Inline highlighting of claims on any webpage
• Quick verdict tooltips without leaving page
• Save/bookmark fact-checks

Recommended:

• UN-29: In-Context Fact-Checking - Browser extension for real-time verification
• FR58: Browser Extensions - Chrome, Firefox, Safari with context menu
• FR59: Cross-Site Highlighting - Highlight and analyze claims on any website

When to Address: Test web platform first, then build extension MVP if user demand validated

Research Evidence:

• "3-click verification: Select → Right-click → Verify" is standard UX pattern
• Extensions like UnCovered, Pino, InVID/WeVerify widely adopted
• NewsGuard browser extension demonstrates market acceptance

4.2 Gap: Multilingual Support

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: HIGH
Urgency: MEDIUM

Why Important:

• Risk: HIGH - Mission limited to English speakers (20% of world)
• Impact: VERY HIGH - Excludes 80% of world population
• Strategy: CRITICAL ALIGNMENT - Vision of "a world where decisions are grounded in evidence" - not just English-speaking world

Why Urgent:

• Fail fast: MEDIUM - Test which languages users need, validate translation quality early
• Legal: None
• Promises: MEDIUM-HIGH if mission statement emphasizes "global" or "world"

Missing Requirements:

• Interface available in multiple languages
• Content translation/analysis in non-English languages
• Right-to-left (RTL) language support (Arabic, Hebrew)
• Locale-specific formatting (dates, numbers, currencies)
• Character encoding for non-Latin scripts

Recommended:

• FR56: Multilingual Interface - UI in 10+ languages
• FR57: Multilingual Content Analysis - AKEL analyzes claims in multiple languages
• NFR16: Internationalization (i18n) - RTL support, character encodings, locale formatting

When to Address: Post-V1.0 (after English version stable)

Research Evidence:

• Only 25% of internet users speak English (Internet World Stats)
• Misinformation spreads in all languages, many underserved

4.3 Gap: Mobile Apps (Native)

Status: ❌ Not addressed (PWA might be planned)
Importance: HIGH
Urgency: MEDIUM

Why Important:

• Risk: MEDIUM-HIGH - 60% of web traffic is mobile, but not addressing native app expectations
• Impact: HIGH - Affects majority of users who expect native mobile experience
• Strategy: MEDIUM-HIGH - Mobile-first is standard for modern platforms

Why Urgent:

• Fail fast: MEDIUM - Test if responsive web is sufficient or if native apps needed
• Legal: None
• Promises: LOW unless explicitly promised

Missing Requirements:

• iOS native app
• Android native app
• Offline capabilities
• Push notifications
• Camera integration for on-the-spot verification

Recommended:

• UN-32: Mobile-Native Experience - Native apps for iOS/Android
• FR66: Native Mobile Apps - Full mobile capabilities
• NFR17: Progressive Web App - Installable, offline, push notifications

When to Address: Post-V1.0 (test web-first, then native if needed)

4.2 Gap: Media Verification (Images, Videos, Audio)

Status: ❌ Not addressed for V1.0 (deferred to V1.5)
Importance: VERY HIGH
Urgency: MEDIUM

Why Important:

• Risk: HIGH - Cannot address major category of misinformation (visual/audio)
• Impact: VERY HIGH - Visual misinformation is primary vector
• Strategy: CRITICAL ALIGNMENT - Mission incomplete without multimedia fact-checking

Why Urgent:

• Fail fast: VERY HIGH - Should test approach quickly (partner vs. build?)
• Legal: None
• Promises: MEDIUM (depends on mission statements)

Missing Requirements:

• Reverse image search integration
• Video frame extraction and analysis
• Audio deepfake detection
• EXIF metadata extraction
• Synthetic media detection (AI-generated content)

Recommended:

• UN-31: Media Verification - Image, video, audio fact-checking
• FR63: Image Verification - Reverse search, EXIF, synthetic detection
• FR64: Video Verification - Frame analysis, metadata, deepfake detection
• FR65: Audio Verification - Voice deepfakes, audio forensics

When to Address: V1.5 (pilot with existing tools like InVID, TinEye before building in-house)

Note: Originally planned as FR46, FR51, FR47 for V1.0, now deferred to V1.5 to focus V1.0 on core text-based fact-checking.

Research Evidence:

• "Most deception relies on decontextualization" of images (Cazzamatta 2025)
• "Deepfakes targeting political figures raise concerns" (Corsi et al. 2024)
• InVID/WeVerify used by professional fact-checkers (AFP 2024)

5. Medium Importance Gaps

5.1 Gap: Embeddable Widgets

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: MEDIUM
Urgency: LOW

Missing Requirements:

• JavaScript widget for embedding fact-checks in third-party sites
• WordPress plugin
• Customizable styling to match publisher branding

Recommended:

• FR61: Embeddable Widgets - JavaScript widgets for third-party sites
• FR62: CMS Plugins - WordPress, Drupal, Ghost plugins

When to Address: Post-V1.0 (after core platform stable)

5.2 Gap: Educational Partnerships

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: MEDIUM
Urgency: LOW

Missing Requirements:

• Curriculum materials for K-12 and university educators
• Classroom discussion guides
• Student exercises and assignments
• Teacher training materials

Recommended:

• Include in FR69: Curriculum Materials

When to Address: V2.0+ (after platform established)

5.3 Gap: Professional Collaboration Tools

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: MEDIUM
Urgency: LOW

Missing Requirements:

• Shared workspaces for fact-checking teams
• Assignment and workflow management
• Internal notes and discussion threads
• Collaborative editing

Recommended:

• FR72: Collaboration Workspace - Team features for professional fact-checkers

When to Address: Post-V1.0 (for professional fact-checkers)

5.4 Gap: Community Discussion

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: MEDIUM
Urgency: LOW

Missing Requirements:

• Public comment threads on fact-checks
• Community forums
• Upvoting/downvoting

Recommended:

• FR75: Community Discussion - Forums and comment threads

When to Address: V2.0+ (requires moderation capacity)

5.5 Gap: User Analytics

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: MEDIUM
Urgency: LOW

Missing Requirements:

• Anonymous usage analytics
• A/B testing framework
• User satisfaction surveys
• Funnel analysis

Recommended:

• FR78: Analytics Dashboard - Usage tracking and insights

When to Address: Beta 0 (to measure product-market fit)

5.6 Gap: Personalization

Status: ❌ Not addressed
Importance: MEDIUM
Urgency: LOW

Missing Requirements:

• Saved searches
• Custom feeds based on topics of interest
• Personalized recommendations
• User preference settings

Recommended:

• FR81: User Personalization - Custom feeds, saved searches, preferences

When to Address: V2.0+ (after core platform stable)

6. Summary: What to Address When

POC/Beta 0 (Urgent)

• NFR14-NFR15, FR55: Accessibility (legal requirement)
• UN-34, FR67-FR69: Educational resources (transparency requires education)

V1.0 (Important)

• UN-29, FR58-FR59: Browser extensions (competitive necessity)
• FR56-FR57, NFR16: Multilingual support (mission alignment)
• UN-32, FR66, NFR17: Mobile experience (user expectation)

Post-V1.0 (Valuable)

• FR61-FR62: Embeddable widgets
• FR72: Professional collaboration
• FR75: Community discussion
• FR78: Analytics
• FR81: Personalization

7. Requirement Summary

Existing Requirements (From Baseline):

• Functional: FR1 through FR54 (includes ClaimReview FR44; FR46, FR51, FR47 moved to V1.5)
• Non-Functional: NFR1 through NFR13
• User Needs: UN-1 through UN-28

Proposed New Requirements (From This Gap Analysis):

• Functional: FR55 through FR84 (30 new)
• Non-Functional: NFR14 through NFR18 (5 new)
• User Needs: UN-29 through UN-36 (8 new)

Total After Implementation:

• Functional: FR1-FR84 (84 total)
• Non-Functional: NFR1-NFR18 (18 total)
• User Needs: UN-1 through UN-36 (36 total)