Google has introduced the ‘About this image’ tool, making it accessible to all English language users worldwide on Google Search, starting today. This tool is designed to help you verify the credibility and context of online images, providing valuable information, such as:
- Image History: You can see when an image first appeared in Google Search and whether it was previously published on other websites. This helps prevent misrepresentation of old images as current ones.
- How Others Use and Describe the Image: You can view how an image is used on various websites and read what news and fact-checking sources say about it. This helps assess the image’s claims and gather different perspectives.
- Image Metadata: When available, you can access metadata added by image creators, including indications of AI-generated enhancements. Google AI-generated images are clearly marked.
You can use this tool by clicking the three dots on an image in Google Images results, or selecting “more about this page” in the About this result tool in search results.
Fact Check Explorer for Journalists and Fact Checkers
Fact Check Explorer is designed to assist journalists and fact-checkers in investigating images and topics. It uses claim review markup to find fact checks from independent organizations globally.
Users can also check if an image has been featured in a fact check. This version provides an overview of the image’s contexts and how they have evolved over time.
Integration with Fact-Checking Solutions
Google is introducing a beta version of Image Search functionality in FactCheck Claim Search API. This allows approved journalists and fact checkers to search the fact-check image corpus on Fact Check Explorer via an API. They can integrate this knowledge into their solutions, streamlining image fact-checking.
Search Generative Experience for Source Information
Google is experimenting with generative AI to provide descriptions of online sources, especially for lesser-known websites. Users who have opted into Search Generative Experience can now access AI-generated descriptions of sources, along with links to high-quality sites discussing the source. This information appears in the “more about this page” section of About this result.
In a 2023 study by the Poynter Institute’s MediaWise initiative, 70% of respondents expressed a lack of confidence in their ability to authenticate online images. The need for easily accessible tools to verify online content is more critical than ever.
Availability
Google has made the ‘About this image’ tool available to all English language users in Google Search today, and intends to add more access options in the future.
Commenting on the announcement, Nidhi Hebbar, Senior Product Manager and Christopher Savčak, Group Product Manager, said:
We’re dedicated to building the tools and resources to help you feel more confident about navigating what you’re seeing online, whether you’re checking to learn more about a crooked house or to get context about a source you’re reading.