Google misidentifies software engineer as serial killer

A software engineer discovered that a Google search of his name confused him with a serial killer of the same name, prompting concerns about the system's accuracy and reliability.

When searching for his own name, Switzerland-based software engineer Hristo Georgiev discovered that a knowledge panel in Google's search results mistakenly associated him with a notorious serial killer known as "The Sadist".

Georgiev believes the error was caused by Google‘s knowledge graph, which generates informational boxes adjacent to its search results. He reckoned the algorithm matched his picture to the Wikipedia entry because the now-dead killer shared his name.

Google removed Georgiev's image from the killer's infobox after the engineer had reported the issue.

The incident raised concerns about the accuracy and reliability of Google’s Knowledge Graph and the potential for these kinds of errors to have harmful consequences.