Google to start warning users of potentially unreliable search results

Google will start sending notifications to users who click on potentially unreliable sources during searches, especially regarding news stories.

"Sometimes the reliable information you're searching for just isn't online yet," Google's Public Liaison for Search Danny Sullivan said in a statement last week. "This can be particularly true for breaking news or emerging topics, when the information that's published first may not be the most reliable."

He said, as a result, Google will post a notice stating "it may be best to check back later when more information from a wider range of sources might be available."

Sullivan also said the company has trained its systems to detect what topic is rapidly evolving and when a range of sources haven't weighed in yet. However, he did not say how exactly they trained the systems to do this or what they deem to be untrustworthy sources.

Big tech has faced increasing scrutiny and challenges regarding allowing misinformation and disinformation to be posted and over making a judgment about which information should be flagged or removed. 

The search engine has already implemented similar programs, including one that alerts users with a notification called "About This Result," which provides background and context on the given topic of the search, according to PC Mag Australia.