TL;DR:
An assistant can sound sure and be wrong. Asking for the source and opening it takes a minute.
Check three things: the source says what the assistant claims, the source is the right kind of source, and the date is recent enough.
A citation is a pointer, not proof. Only the page itself can confirm the fact.
An assistant tells you that you have 30 days to return a jacket you bought. It said it plainly and confidently. Before you rely on it, how would you find out whether it is true? The answer is one short question and one click.
The short answer
Assistants write fluent sentences whether or not the facts underneath are solid. Fluency is not evidence. The most dependable habit is to ask where the information came from, and then to look at that place yourself.
A citation is a pointer to the page or document an answer is based on. It does not prove the answer, but it lets you check. If an assistant cannot point to anything, treat the claim as a guess you need to verify elsewhere.
What happens step by step
Ask for the source right after the answer: "Where did you get that? Please give me the page."
Open the source yourself. Do not rely on the assistant's description of what it says.
Find the sentence that supports the claim. If you cannot find it, the claim is unsupported.
Check the kind of source. An official page about the policy is stronger than a forum post about it.
Check the date at the top or bottom of the page, and whether it applies to your case.
Walk-through: asking for the source of a fact
This is a made-up example. You ask whether you can return a jacket and the assistant replies, "Yes, within 30 days." You say, "What is the source?" It points to the store's returns page.
You open it. The page says: "Most items can be returned within 30 days. Electronics can be returned within 14 days. Policy updated in January." Two checks follow right away. The jacket is not electronics, so 30 days applies, which matches. And the page was updated in January, so you ask yourself whether you bought the jacket before or after that change.
Now do the date arithmetic, so that "30 days" means a real day on the calendar. You bought the jacket on 20 October. October has 31 days, so there are 11 days left in October after the 20th (31 − 20 = 11). The remaining 30 − 11 = 19 days run into November. The last day to return it is 19 November.
For comparison, a 14-day window would end on 3 November (14 − 11 = 3). If the item were a pair of headphones, relying on a general "30 days" answer would have cost you the return. That is why you open the page rather than trust the summary.
Open the source and read the right sentence
Opening the source catches three common problems. The page might not mention the claim at all. It might mention it with a condition the assistant left out, such as "unworn items only". Or it might be about a different thing, like another country's policy or a different product line.
Look for the sentence that supports the claim, and read the lines around it. A condition is often right next to the headline number.
Date checks
Look for "last updated" or "published". Many pages show it near the title or footer.
Compare it with when the facts could have changed. Policies, prices and software steps change faster than history or maths.
Be careful with undated pages. Without a date, treat anything time-sensitive as unconfirmed.
Check the date that matters to you. The policy in force when you bought something may differ from the one on the page today.
What it can't do
Always supply a real source. It can occasionally produce a link or title that does not exist, or one that does not say what it claims. Always open it.
Judge truth beyond the page. If the page itself is wrong, the citation will faithfully repeat that.
See changes made after it read the page.
Cite what it read out of your own memory. If it relied on general knowledge, there may be no page to open.
Watch out: For health, legal and money decisions, an assistant's answer is a starting point. Confirm with the official source or a qualified person.
Privacy and control
Opening a source is a normal visit to a website, so it behaves like any link you click. Be careful with links to pages asking you to log in or type personal details: a real source rarely needs that to show a fact. When you ask an assistant about a screenshot or document, remember the page it points to may be different from what you shared.
If you use pricing details on a site, remember they change; for DuckyHelper, check the pricing page for what applies to you.
Try it yourself
Ask an assistant a question with an answer that depends on the date, such as how long you have to return something at a store you use. Ask for the source, open it, and write down three things: the quoted sentence, the page's date, and any condition next to it. If all three line up, you can trust it. If any one is missing, you have found out why you checked.
Frequently asked questions
If an assistant gives a link, is the answer true?
No. The link only tells you where to look. Open it and check that it says what the answer claims.
What if it cannot name a source?
Treat the answer as a guess. Look for an official page yourself, or ask it to search and cite.
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