It’s Official: Study Shows Dr Google Really Is Wrong More Often Than Not

PETER DOCKRILL 24 MAY 2020 

When people feel unwell, researching symptoms online is one of the easiest and quickest ways to find information that might be able to help explain the problem.

Unfortunately, getting a DIY diagnosis via the internet is likely to be wrong more often that not, according to new research that might make you think twice about Googling your symptoms next time you get sick.null

A study analysing the accuracy of online symptom-checking websites and apps reveals that the quality of their diagnostic advice varies considerably, and on average they only list the correct diagnosis first about one-third (36 percent) of the time.

“While it may be tempting to use these tools to find out what may be causing your symptoms, most of the time they are unreliable at best and can be dangerous at worst,” says study first author and masters student Michella Hill from Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Australia.

Continuing story at Science Alert

The findings are reported in The Medical Journal of Australia.