Deciding which online information is reliable can be a challenge, but luckily there are a few simple strategies that can help to separate good information from less credible data.
Meta-Web Information Searches
A Meta-Web Information search permits users to find out what other Web sites have to say about a particular Web page or its author.
The "Link" Command
Sometimes, seeing who links to - or talks or writes about - a particular Web page can offer insights into its quality. Meta-Web information searches can help to validate information on a particular Web page by showing you what kinds of Web pages link to it.
You can find out which sites link to a specific Web page by going to a search engine and entering a "link:" command in the search box, followed by the Web page's address (URL). Meta search engines that integrate several different search engines will offer best results.
For example, a search using the URL for the Media Awareness Network brings up over 3,000 sites in the results. The fact that most of these sites are education or government resource pages supports the Network's claim that it is a nonprofit, educational organization.
Author Search
It's also possible to measure the quality of a Web site by conducting a background check on the author of a Web page.
Simply conduct a search for the author's name, in quotation marks. Results may include other articles written by the author, articles written about the author, or Web sites that use the author's work as examples. Investigating the types of Web pages that refer to the author or the author's materials can give context to Web page contents.
Domain Registration Search
In order to obtain a domain name, all Web sites residing on the World Wide Web must first register. So another quick way to assess credibility is to see who registered a particular Web page.
Whois.net is a Web-based domain research service that provides background information relating to Web sites. When the URL or domain name for a Web site is entered into the Whois data base, all Web sites featuring that domain name will appear in the results. For example, a search for "media-awareness.ca" will generate all Web pages that use "media-awareness" in their addresses.
For each address, Whois provides (where applicable) information about who registered the site, the name and address of the organization behind the site, contact information and server information.
Identify the Host Domain
Many Web pages are part of, or reside on, other Web sites. By paring a Web address down to the host's domain name, users can learn much about the purpose of the page they are visiting.
 | For example, if you come across this online academic paper on feline reactions to bearded men and are a bit skeptical, it's fairly easy to check out the source. |
The full address for this page is:
www.improb.com/archives/classical/cat/cat.html
Shortened down to its domain name, <www.improb.com> takes you to the Web site for the Annals of Improbable Research (AIR) a humor magazine of science, medicine and technology.
Given the source, these scientific "findings" shouldn't be taken too seriously!
Anyone can be fooled, but using these quick strategies and applying the Five W's of Cyberspace can lessen your chances of being taken in by misinformation.
