Google's new Image and Source checker

Google has launched 3 new ways to check images and sources online. Image metadata includes fields that may indicate that it has been generated or enhanced by AI.

What's going on here?

Google is launching new AI-powered features to provide more context around images and sources you find online.

What does this mean?

Google is addressing the spread of misinformation by equipping users with more information to evaluate what they see. This includes surfacing an image's history, metadata, and how others describe it. For sources, AI will generate descriptions summarizing info from reliable sites.

Why should I care?

These tools address increasing concerns about image authenticity online. With visual misinformation spreading rapidly, having accessible verification tools is essential. About this image's metadata and usage history can reveal manipulated images. Integrating image search into Fact Check Explorer streamlines investigating suspect images for journalists. Source descriptions supplemented by AI can quickly provide background on unfamiliar sites.

Ultimately, these are practical tools that improve online credibility with minimal effort for users. In an era where viral falsehoods spread rapidly, improving accessibility to verification features helps promote a healthier online information ecosystem. These incremental expansions optimize existing fact checking abilities, rather than introducing wholly new paradigms. Google astutely targets specific pain points around unfamiliar sources and out-of-context images that are straightforward to operationalize. Though not foolproof, added friction and transparency around verifying images and sources meaningfully improves the status quo.