Online Verification
Verify Online Information
Read laterally, trace claims to their origins, practice click restraint, and find out what other credible sources say.
Verify the information →
Seminar Central
Mrs. Adams
Mrs. Adams
Research Toolkit
Finding a source is only the beginning. Learn how to investigate who created it, understand what it says, examine its evidence, and decide how confidently you can use it.
Ask whether the source is credible for this claim, relevant to this inquiry, and supported by evidence strong enough for the conclusion being made.
Examine the source’s origin, author, purpose, perspective, relevance, and academic quality.
Read laterally, trace important claims, and find out what other credible sources say.
Navigate the article and determine what the researcher actually found.
Evaluate the evidence, recognize limitations, and choose how to use the source.
Our Source Credibility Guide combines the strongest parts of common evaluation systems into one process adapted from Turnitin’s student resources.
A domain, publication type, credential, or apparent bias never determines credibility by itself. Investigate how each feature affects this source’s value for this inquiry.
A strong evaluation considers each question separately.
How trustworthy is the source or evidence for this purpose?
How directly does it connect to the inquiry or claim?
What specific role can it play in the investigation?
Do not finish with “This source is credible.” Decide how the source belongs, or does not belong, in your inquiry.
The source and evidence are credible, relevant, and appropriate for the claim.
Useful, but its perspective, methods, date, or limitations affect how strongly you can rely on it.
It may reveal a stakeholder’s position even when it is not strong factual evidence.
Find the original evidence or confirm the claim through independent credible sources.
The source is too weak, misleading, irrelevant, or unsupported for your purpose.
Choose the situation that matches what you are working with right now.
Read laterally, trace claims to their origins, practice click restraint, and find out what other credible sources say.
Verify the information →Navigate the abstract, literature review, methods, results, discussion, and limitations without reading blindly from beginning to end.
Learn the anatomy →Determine whether specific evidence is credible, relevant, sufficient, and strong enough to support the author’s claim.
Test the evidence →If you cannot explain why a source is credible and how its evidence supports a specific claim, you are not finished evaluating it.