Perplexity · Practical walkthrough

Check when Perplexity is using your files or the public web

You asked Perplexity what your own terms say, and it answered with what a stranger's blog says. A public page can't tell you what your internal policy is.

Task by Task12 min read + practice

What you'll make

a short answer to a question about your own document, with every point cited to that document and anything it doesn’t cover marked as missing.

What you'll need

Perplexity, a file you’re allowed to upload (or a short excerpt to paste), one specific question and about 10 minutes.

Example result.

New trade customers get 14 days from invoice [Trade terms v3, section 2]. 30 days applies only to accounts agreed by the finance manager [section 2]. Deposits: not covered in this document. Sources: Trade terms v3 only. No web pages used.

For when to use your files and when to use the web at all, see choose where an AI answer should come from. This post is about checking which one Perplexity actually used.

1. Attach the file and set the sources

Start a new thread and attach the file with + Attach, or paste a short labelled excerpt. Check the file appears in the composer before you ask anything.

Then limit the sources where you can:

Set sources for search (the globe icon by the search box) lets you choose what Perplexity searches, such as the web or a connected app like Google Drive. Turn off Web if the question is only about your file.
On Enterprise, choose Org Files and deselect Web to search only your organisation’s files.
In a Project, the project’s files are available alongside whatever sources you select.

With an ordinary attachment, Perplexity may still decide to search the web as well, so the prompt in step 2 and the check in step 3 still matter.

Why this works: the fewer sources in play, the fewer places a wrong answer can come from.

What you should see: your file attached, and Web switched off if your plan offers the choice.

2. Ask a file-only question

Use only [document name and version]. Answer [your question] with the relevant passage and section. State any conditions or exceptions, and say what the document doesn't cover.
Don't search the web, don't fill gaps from general practice, and don't use any other file. If you can't read the document, say so.

[document name and version] is the file title as attached; [your question] is one specific question.

Why this works: naming the document and asking for its sections makes every point checkable. “Don’t fill gaps from general practice” stops a typical answer standing in for your rule. A prompt states the boundary you want; it doesn’t technically exclude other sources, which is why you check.

What you should see: a short answer with section references and a line on what isn’t covered.

3. Check what the citations point to

Open the Sources for the answer and each numbered citation. For every point, check the citation is your file, then find the passage and confirm the wording. If any citation is a web page, that point hasn’t been established by your document.

Then check coverage. An excerpt that states the payment period but not the deposit rules can’t tell you about deposits. Ask the document’s owner, or attach the right section.

Why this works: the citations are Perplexity’s record of where each point came from. They’re the only reliable way to tell a file answer from a web answer.

What you should see: every citation pointing to your file, and each gap stated.

Check the result

Every citation is your file, not a web page.
Each cited passage says what the answer claims.
Conditions and exceptions survived (“only if”, “unless”).
Anything the document doesn’t cover is marked, not filled in.

The usual failure: a public page answers instead of your file. It usually sounds reasonable (“30 days is typical”), which is exactly why it gets through. Spot it by any citation that isn’t your document.

That answer used [web source] instead of [your document]. Remove those claims as statements about our terms. Answer again from [your document] only, cite the section for each point, and leave anything it doesn't cover unanswered.

Worked example: payment terms for a new trade customer

Fictional example. An account manager attaches the company’s trade terms and asks what payment terms a new trade customer gets. The relevant excerpt:

Trade terms v3 (fictional)
Section 2. Payment: invoices are payable within 14 days. 30-day terms apply only to accounts agreed in writing by the finance manager.
Section 3. Deliveries: (not relevant)
The document doesn't mention deposits.

The first answer: “New trade customers usually get 30 days to pay, which is standard for business invoices [1].” Citation 1 was a small-business advice blog. The file wasn’t cited at all.

She switched Web off in Set sources for search, used the repair prompt with the blog and “Trade terms v3”, and got the answer in the example result: 14 days, 30 only with the finance manager’s written agreement, deposits not covered.

“Usually” was the tell. A file answer says what the document says; a web answer says what’s typical.
The condition is the useful part. “30 days only if the finance manager agrees in writing” tells her what to do if the customer asks for longer.
“Deposits: not covered” is a real answer. It sends her to the finance manager rather than to a guess.

Task kit for this job: Download (ZIP) · Reusable instructions

Go deeper

Connected files and project copies behave differently

A connector such as Google Drive searches the live source when you select it in Set sources for search, alongside any other sources you’ve left on. A file copied into a Perplexity Project from a connected source is a one-time copy: if the original changes, the project copy doesn’t. For a policy that changes, check the date of the copy you’re citing, or use the connector. See keep Perplexity research together in a project.

Check long files for coverage

A long file may be answered from the parts that look most relevant, so an attached file isn’t proof every page was read. For anything that matters, ask a question whose answer sits on a specific page you’ve already read, and check the citation lands there. For checking citations in general, see ask Perplexity a work question and check the citations.