If you’re also the type of person who is wary of clicking on questionable links in your search results, here’s some good news: Google’s renovation its original search engine to give us more information about the results we see before we take that risky click.
Almost all English language search results get a new widget that is meant to reveal a little bit about the website to which it actually leads. The update will launch from today on computers, mobile and within the Google app for Android for US users.
When the update comes to your side, you may see a new ellipse in the upper right corner of a given search result. By typing, a basic ambiguity about the actual website you are referring to is obtained – from Wikipedia, if available. The new panel will also tell you if you’re connected to this site ‘safe, ”Which means that it uses the HTTPS protocol. (You can read all about what it is and why it matters here.)
If the site does not have its own Wikipedia page, Google says it will try to show additional context about the site available, such as when the search giant first indexed the website. And if you’re one of the many, many people who feel the ads in Google search seems a little too much like the actual search results, you’ll be glad to know that these new vagaries also tell you whether a given link is an ad or not.
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Whether you’ll probably get this update later today or if you’ll be outside the US at an unknown time in the future, it’s a good reminder to always be careful where you click.