XPost: comp.internet.services.google, sac.politics, alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   XPost: talk.politics.guns, talk.politics.medicine   
   From: leroysoetoro@americans-first.com   
      
   People are being put at risk of harm by false and misleading health   
   information in Google’s artificial intelligence summaries, a Guardian   
   investigation has found.   
      
   The company has said its AI Overviews, which use generative AI to   
   provide snapshots of essential information about a topic or question,   
   are “helpful” and “reliable”.   
      
   But some of the summaries, which appear at the top of search results,   
   served up inaccurate health information and put people at risk of harm.   
      
   In one case that experts described as “really dangerous”, Google wrongly   
   advised people with pancreatic cancer to avoid high-fat foods. Experts   
   said this was the exact opposite of what should be recommended, and may   
   increase the risk of patients dying from the disease.   
      
   In another “alarming” example, the company provided bogus information   
   about crucial liver function tests, which could leave people with   
   serious liver disease wrongly thinking they are healthy.   
      
   Google searches for answers about women’s cancer tests also provided   
   “completely wrong” information, which experts said could result in   
   people dismissing genuine symptoms.   
      
   A Google spokesperson said that many of the health examples shared with   
   them were “incomplete screenshots”, but from what they could assess they   
   linked “to well-known, reputable sources and recommend seeking out   
   expert advice”.   
      
   The Guardian investigation comes amid growing concern that AI data can   
   confuse consumers who may assume that it is reliable. In November last   
   year, a study found AI chatbots across a range of platforms gave   
   inaccurate financial advice, while similar concerns have been raised   
   about summaries of news stories.   
      
   Sophie Randall, director of the Patient Information Forum, which   
   promotes evidence-based health information to patients, the public and   
   healthcare professionals, said the examples showed “Google’s AI   
   Overviews can put inaccurate health information at the top of online   
   searches, presenting a risk to people’s health”.   
      
   Stephanie Parker, the director of digital at Marie Curie, an end-of-life   
   charity, said: “People turn to the internet in moments of worry and   
   crisis. If the information they receive is inaccurate or out of context,   
   it can seriously harm their health.”   
      
   The Guardian uncovered several cases of inaccurate health information in   
   Google’s AI Overviews after a number of health groups, charities and   
   professionals raised concerns.   
      
   Anna Jewell, the director of support, research and influencing at   
   Pancreatic Cancer UK, said advising patients to avoid high-fat foods was   
   “completely incorrect”. Doing so “could be really dangerous and   
   jeopardise a person’s chances of being well enough to have treatment”,   
   she added.   
      
   Jewell said: “The Google AI response suggests that people with   
   pancreatic cancer avoid high-fat foods and provides a list of examples.   
   However, if someone followed what the search result told them then they   
   might not take in enough calories, struggle to put on weight, and be   
   unable to tolerate either chemotherapy or potentially life-saving   
   surgery.”   
      
   Typing “what is the normal range for liver blood tests” also served up   
   misleading information, with masses of numbers, little context and no   
   accounting for nationality, sex, ethnicity or age of patients.   
      
   Pamela Healy, the chief executive of the British Liver Trust, said the   
   AI summaries were alarming. “Many people with liver disease show no   
   symptoms until the late stages, which is why it’s so important that they   
   get tested. But what the Google AI Overviews say is ‘normal’ can vary   
   drastically from what is actually considered normal.   
      
   “It’s dangerous because it means some people with serious liver disease   
   may think they have a normal result then not bother to attend a   
   follow-up healthcare meeting.”   
      
   A search for “vaginal cancer symptoms and tests” listed a pap test as a   
   test for vaginal cancer, which is incorrect.   
      
   Athena Lamnisos, the chief executive of the Eve Appeal cancer charity,   
   said: “It isn’t a test to detect cancer, and certainly isn’t a test to   
   detect vaginal cancer – this is completely wrong information. Getting   
   wrong information like this could potentially lead to someone not   
   getting vaginal cancer symptoms checked because they had a clear result   
   at a recent cervical screening.   
      
   “We were also worried by the fact that the AI summary changed when we   
   did the exact same search, coming up with a different response each time   
   that pulled from different sources. That means that people are getting a   
   different answer depending on when they search, and that’s not good   
   enough.”   
      
   Lamnisos said she was extremely concerned. “Some of the results we’ve   
   seen are really worrying and can potentially put women in danger,” she   
   said.   
      
   The Guardian also found Google AI Overviews delivered misleading results   
   for searches about mental health conditions. “This is a huge concern for   
   us as a charity,” said Stephen Buckley, the head of information at Mind.   
      
   Some of the AI summaries for conditions such as psychosis and eating   
   disorders offered “very dangerous advice” and were “incorrect, harmful   
   or could lead people to avoid seeking help”, Buckley said.   
      
   Some also missed out important context or nuance, he added. “They may   
   suggest accessing information from sites that are inappropriate … and we   
   know that when AI summarises information, it can often reflect existing   
   biases, stereotypes or stigmatising narratives.”   
      
   Google said the vast majority of its AI Overviews were factual and   
   helpful, and it continuously made quality improvements. The accuracy   
   rate of AI Overviews was on a par with its other search features like   
   featured snippets, which had existed for more than a decade, it added.   
      
   The company also said that when AI Overviews misinterpreted web content   
   or missed context, it would take action as appropriate under its   
   policies.   
      
   A Google spokesperson said: “We invest significantly in the quality of   
   AI Overviews, particularly for topics like health, and the vast majority   
   provide accurate information.”   
      
      
   --   
   November 5, 2024 - Congratulations President Donald Trump.  We look   
   forward to America being great again.   
      
   We live in a time where intelligent people are being silenced so that   
   stupid people won't be offended.   
      
   Every day is an IQ test. Some pass, some, not so much.   
      
   Thank you for cleaning up the disasters of the 2008-2017, 2020-2024 Obama   
   / Biden / Harris fiascos, President Trump.   
      
   Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the   
   The World According To Garp.  Obama sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood   
   queer liberal democrat donors.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)