There are URL shortener Apps on F-Droid. Simple share the link to this app and get a short link without this privacy mess.
PSA on privuhcy
Submitted 16 hours ago by FundMECFS@quokk.au to [deleted]
https://quokk.au/static/media/posts/1d/c0/1dc08isGgni1VfK.jpeg
Comments
Samsy@lemmy.ml 2 hours ago
Eheran@lemmy.world 16 hours ago
So annoying to always have to find out how far you can trim a URL before it breaks.
surewhynotlem@lemmy.world 15 hours ago
Typically anything after the “?”. That’s where the parameters live. There are always exceptions.
Zachariah@lemmy.world 14 hours ago
There are many URLs that require parameters to load a resource (and aren’t necessarily tracking anything). With YouTube’s non-shortened links (for example), the video ID is after the
?
, but is usually (but not always) immediately after.This:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
Can be shortened to:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
But no shorter.
FundMECFS@quokk.au 16 hours ago
Happy cake day
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works 9 hours ago
I mean that’s part of the fun of surfing the web, you get to play a fun puzzle game of “How to Lobotomize a URL”
rumba@lemmy.zip 2 hours ago
Check out this cool video
NotSteve_@piefed.ca 15 hours ago
Everything after the ? can be safely removed
This is usually true but but not always. There's often times when a URL query like that is used to choose the page to load. I believe wordpress does this
kungen@feddit.nu 14 hours ago
Only on “I have really bad SEO” kinds of blogs. Query strings have been considered a negative thing for many many years.
lime@feddit.nu 13 hours ago
whuh? querystrings are integral to things like pagination. they are by no means a negative thing.
tias@discuss.tchncs.de 13 hours ago
Not everybody cares for SEO BS
funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works 13 hours ago
WordPress uses a taxonomic system you choose with a mix of the Settings page and how you organize your template hierarchy. To my knowledge there is no out of the box query url functionality in the core system.
SomethingBurger@jlai.lu 13 hours ago
There is.
?s=
for a search, and you can combine it with other parameters such as date or taxonomy terms.
brown567@sh.itjust.works 13 hours ago
Sometimes I’ll post a picture straight from a duckduckgo search, and it doesn’t work without the stuff after the ?
(I’m also not sure how long the url is valid for, so I try not to do this too often)
kieron115@startrek.website 12 hours ago
If you’re still using firefox, right click -> copy clean link. works most of the time.
Korhaka@sopuli.xyz 12 hours ago
I usually just do it because shorter links look better than 30 lines of crap
vithigar@lemmy.ca 11 hours ago
Right? The fact that this is an extra bit of tracking information I don’t want makes this an easy sell for anyone looking for a reason to do this, but for me it’s because it just makes links uglier.
Puddinghelmet@lemmy.world 2 hours ago
Time to put new privacy laws in place or force politicans to do it
dan@upvote.au 8 hours ago
This is kinda true but also kinda fear mongering. UTM parameters are just to track where you clicked the link from, and don’t contain anything about you personally.
Cracks_InTheWalls@sh.itjust.works 15 hours ago
Yep!
Only thing I want to see after a ? in a youtube url is t=4m20s
lime@feddit.nu 13 hours ago
personally i like v=aO82NftCga to be in there as well
over_clox@lemmy.world 16 hours ago
This belongs more on Technology and Privacy communities.
For Android users at least, I recommend the Léon URL Cleaner app, when you share a link from many common sources to the URL Cleaner, it removes all that tracking shit for you.
sk1nnym1ke@piefed.social 16 hours ago
This belongs more on Technology and Privacy communities.
I guess it was posted here to reach a broader audience.
Dreaming_Novaling@lemmy.zip 13 hours ago
I’m upset, the tech and privacy communities need to step it up cause I’ve never seen this fact. I kinda knew URLs had a lot of junk, but I never knew what could be removed.
BakedCatboy@lemmy.ml 16 hours ago
ClearURLs was my go to on Firefox, I think it’s still great but it gave me trouble on a couple of sites because it modified the url in the address bar (it was like AliExpress and shopee, Chinese e-commerce sites that look like a web dev vomited, so I hardly blame ClearURLs)
Firefox also now has “copy clean link” when you right click the url bar which also works great.
darthelmet@lemmy.world 16 hours ago
Thanks. I didn’t know about that. Although I tried doing it and the option was grayed out. Any idea what might be wrong? Do I need to change a setting or something? This was on youtube.
BakedCatboy@lemmy.ml 16 hours ago
I don’t think YouTube actually has tracking parameters in the url normally, but if you use the share button then the youtu.be link will include the video ID as well tracking. But it looks like you can kinda use it there too if you select the link with tracking, it seems to detect that it’s a link and offers the clean link option when you right click it.
If you go to an Amazon item page then you should see it available when right clicking the address bar.
benignintervention@lemmy.world 16 hours ago
I also use URLCheck on my phone. Made it the default browser and it pops up with options to clean the link and choose which browser to open it with
dual_sport_dork@lemmy.world 13 hours ago
Firefox also now has “copy clean link” when you right click the url bar which also works great.
I am an avid and exclusive user of Firefox and I never discovered this because it never would have occurred to me in a million years to right click the URL bar for any reason. So I’ll be damned; there it is. (I always just lasso the relevant part myself and hit ctrl + c.)
nieminen@lemmy.world 8 hours ago
I use an app called “Leon URL Cleaner” from F-Droid. Does a really good job removing tracking params, and only adds one extra step to sharing a URL.
speq@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 hours ago
There’s also URLCheck:
moosetwin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 12 hours ago
hey you, yeah you, you’re finally awake
gerald_eliasweb@reddthat.com 7 hours ago
I did not know what those were for before seeing this but I remeber seeing “source=chat_gpt” next to a link to a source in a news article and thought that it was odd.
don@lemmy.ca 15 hours ago
You all got Rick-rolled btw
PunnyName@lemmy.world 15 hours ago
XcQ all the way!
don@lemmy.ca 12 hours ago
“XcQ, LINK STAYS BLUE! 😁
spankmonkey@lemmy.world 15 hours ago
Only if they typed it in, but I appreciated a recognizable link!
Microw@piefed.zip 11 hours ago
If you run across a link with a regular "?utm_source=.." , that can not tell people anything about you. It simply tells the website "register one click onto this article coming from this specific newsletter we sent out". It does not tie this information to you.
With other tracking things, what is described here is absolutely possible though.
ramble81@lemmy.zip 15 hours ago
I always do this when I post YouTube links. Be damned if I want to be associated with you lot! (Seriously though, it’s a good idea to do)
dharmacurious@slrpnk.net 10 hours ago
Most of my internetin’ is done on mobile, because I’m very rarely at my desk, and when I am, I’m normally working on school. Are there any solutions to handling this easily on mobile without having to manually erase part of the pasted link when I go to send it to someone? A few people have mentioned that’s it’s not 100% guaranteed that the anything after ? Is worthless, so I don’t know how to ensure I’m not breaking a link
LordKitsuna@lemmy.world 2 hours ago
Firefox mobile has plenty of add-ons that will just remove it for you
nieminen@lemmy.world 8 hours ago
interdimensionalmeme@lemmy.ml 16 hours ago
Just a reminded, if you have the Clipboard Manager called Ditto
You can strip those right out of your pasted URLs, even many at once !
(for windows users, for linux there is github.com/farzher/clipman but it lacks that particular feature at this time )
lemmyknow@lemmy.today 15 hours ago
Thing I find funny is when the url seems to indicate you came from an email or something. Now if I share it, anyone who clicks will also count as coming from an email. Dumass ruining your own statistics
PastaCannon@lemmy.ml 15 hours ago
This is so important, too many people don’t know about this.
But still this is not shitposting. God .world sucks. Ble
slurp@programming.dev 15 hours ago
I like this to trim/handle redirects f-droid.org/packages/com.trianguloy.urlchecker/
LemmyThinkAboutThat@lemmy.myserv.one 12 hours ago
Brave for iOS has the Copy Clean Link option. There’s GNAT Cleaner from the App Store but I’ve never used it.
I tried adding screenshots but I haven’t been able to upload photos in almost a week.
Mwa@thelemmy.club 15 hours ago
I am pretty sure firefox let’s you remove trackers from url.
umbrella@lemmy.ml 14 hours ago
yup, ita a right click option
renzhexiangjiao@piefed.blahaj.zone 15 hours ago
does anyone know what ?feature=shared does in youtube links and whether it's worth removing it?
lena@gregtech.eu 15 hours ago
You can remove it, it tells YouTube how you got to that video. In this case someone shared it.
FundMECFS@quokk.au 15 hours ago
Not very high priority to remove though. Nothing identfiable in the gran scheme I guess.m
dangling_cat@piefed.blahaj.zone 15 hours ago
If you are using iOS, you can create a shortcut or download one of the premade shortcuts without any 3rd party apps :3
FundMECFS@quokk.au 15 hours ago
Do you have a link to any of these :)
Zatore@lemmy.zip 14 hours ago
I made a Firefox plugin that does this for you on YouTube. It’s called “YouTube Clean Share” if anyone is interested
uriel238@lemmy.blahaj.zone 14 hours ago
I’m on mobile so I will have to drop a link later (if ever)
but do a websearch for the utility link cleaner
It’s awesome. Thank me later.
artiman@piefed.social 10 minutes ago
this isn't a shitpost this community is being dragged through the mud by non-shitposts