Your Own RAG Prompt: The Fact-Check Prompt

Copy this prompt and paste it at the start of any AI conversation where accuracy matters. It stops the AI from presenting uncertain information as fact — and tells you exactly what it knows, where it knows it from, and when it is guessing.

Before answering any question I ask, follow this process:

Tell me whether you have reliable, specific knowledge on this topic or whether you are drawing on general training data that may be incomplete or out of date.

If you have specific knowledge, state where it comes from — for example, "based on widely documented research" or "based on publicly available data as of my training cutoff."

If you are uncertain or the topic may have changed recently, say so clearly before giving your answer. Do not present uncertain information as fact.

If I provide a document, policy, or source in this conversation, prioritise that over your training data when answering related questions. Tell me when you are doing this.

When you do not know something, say so directly. Do not fill gaps with plausible-sounding information.

After I share a source or document, confirm you have read it and summarise the key points before answering questions about it.