Official Google Canada Blog: Spot misinformation online with these tips

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Spot misinformation online with these tips

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Google SearchA growing body of external researchEthan PorterThomas WoodYamil Velezgiven last year’s sourdough craze.

See how an image is being used in context online. You can search with an image by right clicking on a photo and selecting “Search Google for Image.” This is a simulated example to illustrate how this product works and not the actual experience.

Check if an image is being used in the right context.

A picture is worth 1000 words, as the old adage goes. But a picture can also be taken out of context or edited to mislead. You can search with an image by right clicking on a photo and selecting “Search Google for Image.” You can do the same on mobile by touching and holding the image. This will look for the picture to check if it has appeared online before, and in what context, so you can see if it has been altered from its original meaning.

What’s better than one source? Several! See how (and whether) different news outlets have reported on the same event so that you can get the full picture. Switch to news mode or search for a topic in news.google.com. Make sure to click through to “Full Coverage” if the option is available.

Looking for news on if Earth was visited by aliens? In this simulated example you can see how you can click to find Full Coverage on a topic, and see what other news orgs are covering it. This GIF is a simulated example and is not the full experience of how the product works.

Consult the fact-checkers.

Fact-checkers may have addressed that random story your relative sent you in the group chat – or a similar one that will point you in the right direction to find out what really happened. Try searching for the topic in the Fact Check Explorer, which collects more than 100,000 fact checks from reputable publishers around the world.

In this simulated example see how you can use Fact Check Explorer to find out if an online claim has been fact checked. This is a demonstration of how the product works and not the full experience.

Use Google Earth or Street View to verify the location.

False stories about events happening in far-off places can spread due to our lack of familiarity with their location. If you want to get a sense of whether a photo is actually from the place it claims to be from, try checking Google Earth or look at the Street View of a location on Google Maps.

Say your friend sends you a story about Bigfoot strolling by the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. Searching for the Eiffel Tower on Street View will at the very least confirm that the tower doesn’t have a big red cowboy hat at the top (like it does in Paris, Texas). If that part doesn’t check out, the rest of the story might be fishy, too.

In this simulated example, you can see how you can find the differences between the real Eiffel Tower in Paris, France and the one in Paris, Texas. This is just a demonstration and not the full product experience.

We’re committed to helping people spot misinformation online and supporting the fact-checking ecosystem.

Most recently, we provided $3 million to journalistic efforts fact-checking misinformation about the COVID-19 immunization process, with a concentration on projects that aim to reach audiences underserved by fact-checking. We also launched a GNI University Verification Challenge across Asia to boost verification skills among journalism students. In addition, Google.org helped the nonprofit Full Fact through grant funding and seven full-time pro-bono engineering fellows to boost the number of claims they could detect.

For more tips and best practices, check out the resources put together by the International Fact-Checking Network at factcheckingday.com. And if you’re a journalist, check out the GNI Training Center.

Posted by: Alexios Mantzarlis, News and Information Credibility Lead

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Spot misinformation online with these tips

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