Using and Citing Information from the Internet

Abstract

The Internet is a wide-open frontier. Anyone, for the cost of a homepage, can put any type of information on the Internet. Therefore, a note of caution is necessary. All information on the Internet is not created equal. You must use your judgment in determining the validity and reliability of information that you find on the Internet. Sites that are moderated or sponsored by educational institutions, national/international associations, or governments tend to provide more credible information. However, there are also some excellent personal sites, so your discernment is the key to using only credible information. If a site asks you to pay to see the information it provides, this should sound a cautionary note. Certainly you will have to pay to subscribe to services such as database searching through MEDLINE or CINAHL Direct, but a subscription such as this differs from the cyber snake oil that awaits the unwary. Two initiatives that give some guidance to evaluating health information found on the Internet warrant mention.