Google has suffered the “mother of all leaks” after 2,500 documents surfaced online that exposed how its algorithm decides what users see. The internal documents have suggested that the system, which determines how pages rank in search results, has focused on the number of clicks a site receives rather than how reputable the source is. This could push fake news sites or misleading stories to the top of a Google search, causing people to fall into the trap of receiving more poorly sourced information. Google has previously denied using click-through rates (CTRs) to boost algorithm results. Google's algorithms consider several factors when displaying search results, including the words used in the query, how relevant the pages are, the source's expertise and the user's location. However, the leaked documents show that the algorithm reportedly generates results by focusing on the CTRs to measure its success, as well as Chrome data, the domain authority, and the author's byline. If the documents are accurate and the search algorithm does rely on CTRs, this could prove detrimental in the upcoming presidential election as people turn to Google for additional information about the candidates.
