Understanding how individuals and organizations can verify the reliability and credibility of information.
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Card 1
Finding a consistent professional profile on an independent site like LinkedIn
Explanation
A consistent professional profile on an independent platform links the name to a verifiable real person and career history.
Common mistake
Assuming a photo and a full name on the article are enough to prove the author is real.
Card 2
Looking for formal training or publications specifically in that subject area
Explanation
Relevant training or subject-specific publications show they have studied or researched that exact topic.
Common mistake
Confusing general popularity or output volume with actual subject-matter expertise.
Card 3
Lower accountability and a higher need for independent verification
Explanation
When no one is clearly responsible, there is less reputational risk for spreading false or misleading claims.
Common mistake
Assuming anonymity means the information must be more honest or unbiased.
Card 4
Confirming it clearly states who runs the site and their purpose
Explanation
A credible About page identifies the people or organization behind the site and explains their mission transparently.
Common mistake
Treating a polished design on the About page as proof of reliability.
Card 5
Checking whether its funders profit directly from its claims
Explanation
If funders benefit financially from certain conclusions, this can bias how information is presented.
Common mistake
Assuming non-profit or foundation status automatically removes financial conflicts.
Card 6
As a weak positive sign that still needs content-level verification
Explanation
Such domains are harder to obtain, but individual pages can still be outdated, biased, or wrong.
Common mistake
Treating official-sounding domains as automatic guarantees of truth.
Card 7
They should be independent of each other and the original source
Explanation
Independent sources reduce the risk that you are seeing the same unverified claim copied repeatedly.
Common mistake
Counting many reposts of one article as confirmation from multiple sources.
Card 8
Searching their databases to see if the specific claim was evaluated
Explanation
Fact-checking sites often analyze popular claims and provide evidence-based ratings you can review.
Common mistake
Treating absence of a fact-check as proof that a claim is accurate.
Card 9
To find where the image appeared earlier and in what context
Explanation
Finding earlier uses of an image can reveal if it is old, miscaptioned, or taken from another event.
Common mistake
Assuming a widely used image online must reflect the described event accurately.
Card 10
Lateral reading opens new tabs to check other sites about the source
Explanation
Instead of staying on one page, you leave it briefly to see how others describe its reliability.
Common mistake
Relying only on information inside the page itself to judge trustworthiness.
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