Outgoing Webhooks
Introduction
Outgoing webhooks are AAArdvark’s way of tapping your other tools on the shoulder the moment something happens – a new issue is found, a scan finishes, an issue gets fixed.
This guide explains what they are, how to set one up, and what to expect once the data starts flowing. No prior webhook experience needed.
Who this guide is for. Anyone connecting AAArdvark to another service – whether that’s a no-code tool like Zapier or a custom endpoint your team built. The setup steps need no coding. The later sections include code samples for developers who want to verify and process the data themselves, but you can skip those if they’re not your job.
How they work
Whenever an event you care about happens on your site, AAArdvark sends a short JSON message to a web address you choose. Your service receives it and can do whatever you like with it.
Common uses
- Copy new accessibility issues straight into your bug tracker, so nothing gets missed.
- Kick off an automation the moment a scan finishes – a Slack message, an email, a status board update.
- Feed live data into a dashboard that tracks how your team’s accessibility work is progressing.
Built-in reliability
Three things make webhook delivery safe and dependable.
Every message is signed. We include a signature with each delivery so your endpoint can confirm it genuinely came from AAArdvark. The signature verification guide explains how that check works.
Every message has a unique ID. That ID stays the same across retries, so your endpoint can spot and ignore accidental duplicates.
Replayed events are clearly labelled. If you ever need historical data resent – say, when setting up a new endpoint – replayed events are marked so you can tell them apart from live ones.
Where to go next
That’s the basics. Here’s where to go deeper, depending on what you need:
Guides
- Setting Up an Outgoing Webhook – create the integration, save your secret, and choose which events you want to hear about.
- What’s Inside Each Webhook Message – the envelope every message arrives in, plus the specific payload for each event type.
- Verifying Webhook Signatures – confirm a message genuinely came from AAArdvark, with code samples for Node.js, PHP, and Python.
- Receiving Webhook Messages Reliably – reply quickly, handle duplicate deliveries, and recognize replayed/backfilled events.
- Outgoing Webhooks vs. Generic Webhooks – which one you need, depending on which direction the data should flow.
Reference
- Webhook Headers – every HTTP header sent with a delivery, and what each one is for.
- Webhook Status Values – quick reference for the issue and instance status values you’ll see in messages.
Related Guides
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Setting Up an Outgoing Webhook
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What’s Inside Each Webhook Message
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Verifying Webhook Signatures
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Receiving Webhook Messages Reliably