About 90 per cent of computer users don't use CTRL-F to search for a word - as they don't know such a keyboard shortcut exists, a Google survey found.

The results stunned Google's Uber Tech Lead for Search Quality and User Happiness, Dan Russell.

Out of control ... 90 per cent don't know what Ctrl F does, according to Google study.

"I interviewed a bus driver who was searching for a transportation rule for a test," Mr Russell told the New Scientist magazine in an interview published yesterday.

"She was scrolling line-by-line through a 100-page web document, so I asked her why she didn't use 'control+F' to search by keyword. It turns out she didn't know about this absolutely basic browser function."