Truth or Dare: How Trustworthy is the Information You Find Online?

Your children use the Internet for their homework, to play games, and to download music. You go online to shop, pay bills, and keep up on current events. And every family member uses e-mail or instant messaging daily. But just how trustworthy is information on the Web and in e-mail and IM?

What Can You Believe Online?

When you're online, the businesses, people, and information you find can seem very straightforward and believable, but what you see is not always what you get.

Applying everyday critical thinking skills to your online activities-searching for information, dealing with e-mail, shopping, or sending instant messages-and teaching your kids to do the same, can help make your online experience safer, more secure, and more rewarding.

Wear Sunscreen: Good Advice, But Who Said It?

Online content can contain errors and, because of the nature of the Internet, the misinformation can be republished and e-mailed so often that it becomes accepted as fact.

You may have read online about Kurt Vonnegut's well-known commencement address at MIT, exhorting students to "wear sunscreen," along with other practical advice for a happy life. The address was widely quoted and even made into a hit song. Except Vonnegut neither wrote nor delivered the speech.

The text was actually written by Mary Schmich, a columnist for the Chicago Tribune, and the real MIT speech that year was given by U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, who never mentioned sunscreen. The mix-up-which occurred when someone sent e-mail containing the text of the newspaper column, attributing it to Vonnegut-perplexed both writers. Yet, despite many stories explaining the error, more than a decade later people sometimes still receive e-mail that names Vonnegut as the author.

If It's Online, It Must Be True, Right?

Another problem with gauging the reliability of online information is that some bloggers offer gossip, rumors, and their own opinions as fact, sometimes even citing fictional sources to make their statements look more legitimate. The Internet has empowered people worldwide to become "citizen journalists," but the editorial guidelines most professional journalists follow don't necessarily apply to blogs and other online content.

Even the reliability of reference sites such as Wikipedia has been questioned, because they provide an open forum where anyone can post content, and they rely on volunteers to catch and correct mistakes. Unfortunately, that means you never really know whether the information is accurate, unless you can verify it through other reliable sources that aren't simply quoting Wikipedia.

The Dangers of Untrustworthy Information Online

Not all inaccurate or misleading information online is the result of accidental mistakes or overzealous bloggers trying to persuade you of their opinion. Some untrustworthy information is posted by scammers intent on stealing your money and identity, or sexual predators seeking contact.

Phishing scams and hoaxes, such as the Nigerian scams and the international lottery scam, use fraudulent e-mail messages and phony Web sites to trick you into revealing your bank account numbers and other personal information, or giving money to the criminals who sent the e-mail. Ads or chain letters that promise free merchandise or other benefits may lead to illegal pyramid schemes or result in unwanted, and potentially damaging, downloads.

Kids are especially vulnerable to the promise of a new MP3 player or HDTV, so it is important to teach them to question the motives behind such "something-for-nothing" offers and to recognize them as potential scams. Those same critical thinking skills may also help your children and teens avoid contact with another type of online criminal.

Sexual predators can frequent online chat rooms and gaming sites used by children and teenagers. They look for vulnerable children, befriend them by posing as other kids or sympathetic adults, and may attempt to lure them to meet in person. Make sure your kids know they should never agree to meet privately with someone they know only from the Internet.

Here are a few steps to help you evaluate online information:
  • Check sources — Assess potential biases or hidden agendas by reading blogger profiles and the About Us page on other Web sites you use.
  • Cross-check information — Be cautious about taking information at face value, and don't believe everything you read. If something sounds suspicious, verify the information by checking it with other reliable sources.
  • Be smart online — Delete spam without opening it, and never respond to offers that promise to make you rich for little or no effort. You can't win a lottery you never entered, and common sense should tell you that someone you've never met isn't likely to trust you with millions of dollars.
  • Do your research — If you or your kids meet someone interesting online, you may be able to learn about that person with an Internet search. The article, "How to Protect Your Online Reputation," includes several search strategies to help you find information about yourself online. You can use those same techniques to find information about other people.

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