Information Verification Checklist

Use this checklist when you encounter an online claim, AI-generated answer, recommendation, statistic, social-media post, article or other information that you may need to rely on.

You do not need to complete every item for every piece of information. The appropriate level of checking depends on the importance of the claim and the consequences of getting it wrong.

1. Identify the exact claim

Before searching for evidence, make sure you know exactly what is being claimed.

• ☐ What specific statement am I being asked to believe?
• ☐ Can I rewrite it as a clear, checkable claim?
• ☐ Does the statement contain more than one claim?
• ☐ Have I separated facts from opinions or interpretations?
• ☐ Is the claim about the past, present or future?

A vague statement is difficult to verify because it may not be clear what evidence would actually confirm or contradict it.

2. Identify the source

Determine where the information originated rather than relying only on the page or person that repeated it.

• ☐ Who originally made the claim?
• ☐ Is the source identifiable?
• ☐ Can I find the original document, study, statement or dataset?
• ☐ Is the information being quoted accurately?
• ☐ Is the source appropriate for the type of claim being made?

A screenshot, repost or social-media summary may be useful as a lead, but it does not necessarily provide enough context to establish the original claim.

3. Check the date

Information can become outdated without becoming obviously false.

• ☐ When was the information originally published?
• ☐ Has it been updated?
• ☐ Does the underlying situation change over time?
• ☐ Is the claim based on an old law, policy, product or software version?
• ☐ Is the information current for the country or location involved?

A statement that was accurate several years ago may no longer describe the current situation.

4. Check context

Numbers and statements can be misleading when important conditions are omitted.

• ☐ What population or group does the claim concern?
• ☐ What country or location does it apply to?
• ☐ What time period does it cover?
• ☐ Are important definitions explained?
• ☐ Are there conditions or exceptions?
• ☐ Is the claim being applied beyond the situation studied?

5. Examine the evidence

Look for evidence that directly supports the important part of the claim.

• ☐ Is supporting evidence provided?
• ☐ Can the evidence be accessed?
• ☐ Does it support the exact claim?
• ☐ Is the evidence primary or secondary?
• ☐ Are important limitations disclosed?
• ☐ Does the conclusion go beyond what the evidence establishes?

The existence of a citation is not enough. The underlying material should support the specific statement being made.

6. Check numbers and statistics

Statistics can appear authoritative while still being misunderstood or presented without necessary context.

• ☐ What is being measured?
• ☐ What is the denominator or comparison group?
• ☐ What is the sample size?
• ☐ What period does the statistic cover?
• ☐ Is the number absolute or relative?
• ☐ Is the original dataset or study available?

For example, “risk increased by 50%” does not tell you the underlying absolute risk unless the baseline is also known.

7. Watch the language

Pay attention to language that may make a conclusion appear stronger than its evidence.

• ☐ Does the statement use words such as “always” or “never”?
• ☐ Does it claim something “proves” another thing?
• ☐ Does it make a guarantee?
• ☐ Does it present an uncertain conclusion as certain?
• ☐ Are important qualifications missing?

Strong language is not automatically evidence of an incorrect claim. It simply means that the evidence should support the strength of the conclusion.

8. Compare independent evidence

For consequential information, avoid depending entirely on one source.

• ☐ Can I find another independent source?
• ☐ Do independent sources agree on the important facts?
• ☐ Are apparently different sources actually repeating the same original claim?
• ☐ Are there credible explanations for disagreements?

Five websites repeating the same press release are not necessarily five independent sources.

9. If AI generated the information

AI-generated answers deserve particular attention because a fluent answer can combine correct information with errors or unsupported details.

• ☐ Have I separated the answer into individual claims?
• ☐ Can important citations be opened and checked?
• ☐ Are the cited sources actually relevant?
• ☐ Could the information have changed since the model's underlying knowledge or retrieval?
• ☐ Does the AI appear unusually certain about a complicated subject?
• ☐ Have I independently checked consequential claims?

For a detailed AI-specific process, see How to Verify an AI Answer.

10. Consider the consequences

Verification should be proportional to the potential impact of an error.

11. Use Supience as an initial signal

The Supience Information Check can help you examine observable characteristics of a piece of information before deciding where to investigate further.

It can be useful for identifying areas involving:

• specificity;
• evidence-related signals;
• uncertainty and qualifications; and
• verifiability.

The result is not a truth score and should not replace the verification steps above.

Run the Supience Information Check

12. Final decision checklist

Before relying on an important claim, ask these final questions:

• ☐ Do I know exactly what is being claimed?
• ☐ Do I know where the claim originated?
• ☐ Have I checked the date and context?
• ☐ Have I examined the underlying evidence?
• ☐ Have I checked important numbers or quotations?
• ☐ Have I looked for independent evidence when necessary?
• ☐ Do I understand the uncertainty or limitations?
• ☐ Is the level of verification appropriate to the consequences?

A compact five-question version

Save this checklist

This checklist can be used whenever you encounter information that looks important, surprising or unusually confident. The goal is not to distrust everything. The goal is to match the amount of verification to the importance of the claim.

For more background, read the Supience Guide or learn how the indicator itself works in the Supience Methodology.