A Google spokesperson told Newsweek why a spike in a Google Trends chart is not “definitive evidence” of a search.
that a spike in a Google Trends chart is not “definitive evidence” of a search—after Fox News claimed that Google Trends data appears to show searches for Nancy Guthrie’s address before her disappearance.
Fox News claimed that Google Trends data appeared to show searches for Guthrie’s address between June 21 and 28, 2025, and again on January 11 of this year."Google Trends is designed for understanding trends in large datasets. For topics with low or no searches, a Google Trends chart will often mix in random noise to protect people’s privacy. That means that a Google Trends chart showing a spike for an uncommon topic is not definitive evidence that a search actually happened," a Google spokesperson toldshow co-host Savannah Guthrie, has been missing for over two weeks, prompting a multiagency search involving local law enforcement and the FBI. Nancy was last seen at her home in the Catalina Foothills neighborhood of Tucson, Arizona, on January 31.Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said at a news conference earlier this month that there were clues at the crime scene indicating Nancy"did not leave on her own." The sheriff has also said Nancy needs daily medication, and it could be fatal if she does not take it every 24 hours. Nanos said in comments to the BBC that he believes the missing 84-year-old was a victim of a targeted kidnapping.Google Trends is a tool that shows relative search interest in a topic over a given time period, but it does not show the total number of searches or the total number of people who have searched, according to a Google spokesperson. For very uncommon searches, Trends data may appear to show some search interest even if there were no actual searches due to statistical noise used as a privacy measure, the spokesperson said. Apparent spikes for low-interest search terms should not be viewed as reflecting actual search activity at an exact time or location by Google users, the spokesperson said. The spokesperson said Google has not taken any manual action to adjust Trends data in this instance, and random statistical noise can cause differences in what people see for low-volume search terms.The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said investigators are analyzing biological evidence found at Nancy’s home, and DNA profiles are currently under lab analysis. The number of profiles being analyzed and other related details are part of the active investigation, the sheriff’s department said. The sheriff’s department said the DNA found at the property did not match DNA from a set of gloves found on a set of gloves located two miles from the home. The FBI said DNA was found on a set of gloves that resembled the gloves worn by a potential subject in a surveillance video released by law enforcement. The FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Department released surveillance photos and video of a potential subject as part of the investigation into Nancy’s disappearance. The agencies said they worked closely with private sector partners to recover any images or video footage from Nancy’s home “that may have been lost, corrupted, or inaccessible due to a variety of factors, including the removal of recording devices.” Law enforcement said the footage showed “an armed individual appearing to have tampered with the camera at Nancy Guthrie's front door the morning of her disappearance.” The sheriff’s department said the DNA evidence from the gloves was submitted to the national CODIS database, but there were no hits. The National DNA Index had over 19.2 million offender profiles, 6.1 million arrestee profiles and 1.4 million forensic profiles as of November of last year, according to the FBI."It’s been two weeks since our mom was taken, and I just wanted to come on and say that we still have hope and we still believe."Anyone with information is asked to contact 1-800-CALL-FBI, 520-351-4900, 88-CRIME or visit tips.fbi.gov. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the recovery of Nancy and/or the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance. A reward of $102,500 is being offered by 88-CRIME for the arrest of the person or persons involved in the disappearance.
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