Finding the source of misinformation.
How to trace where AI got wrong info:
- Ask the AI itself - “What sources say [Company] went out of business?”
- Search Google - “[Company] + out of business” or “closed”
- Check Wikipedia - Often a primary AI source
- Check business databases - Crunchbase, D&B, etc.
- Search Reddit - AI heavily cites Reddit
Common sources of bad info:
| Source | How Often | Fix Difficulty |
|---|
| Old news article | 35% | Medium |
| Wikipedia | 25% | Medium |
| Reddit thread | 20% | Hard |
| Business database | 15% | Easy |
| Pure hallucination | 5% | Hardest |
When we found our client’s issue:
A 2022 blog post speculating about layoffs got picked up. AI connected dots that didn’t exist.
The fix:
We contacted the blog, got a correction. Published authoritative content. Within 6 weeks, AI responses changed.