Credit: Paweł Czerwiński Google has begun alerting users whenever they click on a search result that may take them to a dangerous website.The new feature, which was spotted early last week, went live officially Friday, according to an announcement from The Stop Badware Coalition, which is collaborating with Google on this effort.When users attempt to click over to a website considered to be potentially dangerous, Google shows users an alert page that informs them of the possible risk and gives them the option to click back to the results page or continue on to the questionable website.The flagged websites have been reported as dangerous to The Stop Badware Coalition. Google will progressively replace the generic alert page with pages containing specific reports about the websites. The Stop Badware Coalition will provide these individual reports as well. The Stop Badware Coalition is a nonprofit organization led by Harvard University and the University of Oxford and backed by Google, Lenovo Group and Sun Microsystems.This new Google feature attempts to address a real problem: Search engines routinely display links to websites that download spyware and adware to visitors’ PCs, exploit security vulnerabilities and attempt to scam users and include them in spam lists. In the United States, people land on malicious websites about 285 million times per month by clicking on search results from the five major search engines, according to a recent study conducted by McAfee’s SiteAdvisor unit. Google didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment. By Juan Carlos Perez, IDG News Service (Miami Bureau)Related Links: Google Offers Click Fraud Stats for Transparency The Enterprise Gets Googled Faux Google Website Hides Trojan HorseCheck out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage. Related content brandpost Rebalancing through Recalibration: CIOs Operationalizing Pandemic-era Innovation By Kamal Nath, CEO, Sify Technologies Jun 08, 2023 6 mins CIO Digital Transformation brandpost It’s time to evolve beyond marketing to create meaningful metaverse moments Insights on the results of the Protiviti and Oxford University survey: Executive Outlook on the Metaverse, 2033 and Beyond By Kim Bozzella Jun 08, 2023 6 mins Digital Transformation feature 10 hottest IT jobs for salary growth in 2023 The demand for tech workers hasn’t slowed down, as rising salaries reveal the most sought-after tech professionals for 2023, according to data from Dice. By Sarah K. White Jun 08, 2023 8 mins Salaries IT Jobs Careers interview Oshkosh CIO Anu Khare on IT’s pursuit of value The specialty truck maker’s IT chief sees tech-enabled transformation being fueled by a relentless focus on strategic fit and customer value — and passionate business involvement. By Dan Roberts Jun 08, 2023 9 mins Automotive Industry Manufacturing Industry IT Strategy Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe