These are 7 Types of Search Results on Google You Should Never Trust

Don't believe all search results on Google. (photo: dock. Pixabay)

JAKARTA – Many people now rely on Google to find facts and information on any topic. But because Google doesn't verify every link, it's unwise to always trust the data that this search engine gives you.

Google algorithms like PageRank are getting better at assessing the expertise and trustworthiness of a website. However, wrong information can creep in, or we as readers can make mistakes in interpreting search results.

Some topics require special expertise. That's why it's always better to tread with caution when exploring these seven sensitive subjects.

Medical Information

We don't have to live in uncertainty when we're not feeling well. Google lets us diagnose our symptoms instantly. However, there is a reason behind the "Don't trust Google" sign in your doctor's office.

Medical sites don't have access to your health records. Therefore, they finally suggest all possible causes and treatments for a symptom, not specific to your case.

For example, even though a fever is technically a symptom of cancer, it doesn't mean you have it. Most likely you just have a common cold. Hence, you should undergo a proper examination and consult a real doctor before reaching a conclusion.

Financial Advice

Taking care of your finances can be a complicated process. But Google is the last place where you should seek advice.

Google's treasure trove of data is, at best, an additional resource for your financial research. On the search engine, you will find various opinions and articles that may mislead or cloud your judgment. A direct request to a particular investment will bring up a myriad of links, and it can be difficult to gauge which ones offer good guidance.

Hence, you should stick to a more credible financial research platform and not a search engine like Google to base your final decision on and understand market trends.

Conspiracy Theory

Another topic you should avoid Google is conspiracy theories. Controversial arguments tend to drive most of the online traffic. Some websites exploit this by talking about theories that will attract more clicks and stimulate conversation.

Google is home to the wildest stories on the internet, which often rank highly simply because they are popular. Even for an absurd folk tale like Bigfoot, you'll find enough evidence to convince someone (or just yourself). That's only within the first few pages–you don't even have to go down the rabbit hole.

For example, searching for "Bigfoot sightings" on Google will easily lead you to a large compilation of supposedly real Bigfoot sightings.

Latest News

Misinformation is rampant on the web and, like other online platforms, Google too has struggled to contain the spread of fake news. Issue effect magnifies during breaking news events. In such a scenario, details are few, which gives rise to hoaxes and rumours.

While Google has security measures in place to deal with misinformation, they often don't do it right away. By the time Google picks up fake news, there's a good chance it's already been read by millions of people.

So when you fire up Google right after a breaking news alert, you run the risk of speculation-based reporting. A better alternative is to search directly for specific sites and news sources you trust, not Google.

Religious Practices

Google offers a large number of resources for people who want more religious information. However, it is also in a constant battle with racial bias and discrimination. When researching, you will find sites that support certain religions. It's hard to judge the veracity of this web page when you are new to this topic.

In her book "Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism", Safiya Umoja Noble argues that search engines like Google are not "trusted and credible public information portals" and says they are discriminatory and favor groups that design or fund them.

Because Google's algorithm is influenced by what the majority of its users are searching for, minorities can be misunderstood.

Product Reviews and Recommendations

Most of us look for product reviews when making purchases. But you shouldn't blindly trust all the reviews and recommendations.

While there are sites that publish unbiased hands-on reviews, a large number of websites are run by affiliate marketers trying to get rich quick. They publish articles about even the worst products, and expect to earn a commission for every sale made through their links. But this doesn't mean you can't trust online reviews.

Here are some of the differences between honest and misleading product reviews.

• If the review reads like a piece of wag and fails to mention the downsides, take it with a pinch of salt.
• If no self-taken pictures are of the actual product, then the reviewer probably hasn't used the product.
• Missing author details mean that you shouldn't rely on them too much.
• Generally, untrustworthy sites reword product descriptions instead of providing their own opinion.

Questions Related to Chemicals

When you're dealing with chemicals, even a small mistake can be fatal. Therefore, if there are details regarding a chemical that you are not sure about, turning to Google's search engine may not be the best way forward. Google is known to store a variety of contradictory data, and deciding which to trust can be a challenge.

Like medical platforms, chemical sites don't have access to the state and properties of your environment such as room temperature.

This also applies to the use of chemicals in scenarios outside the lab. For example, the debate about whether having chlorine in a swimming pool is bad for your health has divided the Internet for centuries.

As an alternative to Google, you can check out the official websites of chemical councils and associations.

Don't Trust Wikipedia Facts

One of the biggest misconceptions about the internet is that the information on Wikipedia is always checked and accurate. That's far from the truth. Most Wikipedia content is sourced by many people and can be edited by anyone.

Contrary to popular belief, the site doesn't have a team of human curators fact-checking everything. So while Wikipedia is harmless as far as basic facts are concerned, you should verify what you find there with other, more reliable fact-checking sites than Wikipedia. Thus as reported by Makeuseof.