Before
Since Twitter and other social websites contain a lot of shortened URLs you might feel slightly nervous at times if presented with a link from some unknown person. It becomes a matter of deciding if you feel safe enough to click on those links or not…
For our example we are visiting the How-To Geek Twitter page. Holding the mouse over one of the shortened links provides no clue where the link will lead you. OK…now what do you do?
Note: The URL Tooltip extension is also shown in these screenshots for easy viewing of URLs.
Some Examples of Verify Redirect in Action
Now here is the same link shown above after installing the extension. Not only do you see the shortened URL but you can also see the domain name for the destination website (gizmodo.com). That is definitely a huge improvement.
Note: There are no options to worry with for the extension.
Trying out a bit.ly link…
And a tinyurl link. You can certainly have more peace of mind now with regard to shortened URLs…
Special Note
You will also notice pop-up messages like this one each time that a regular website is redirecting elsewhere. This extension is very good at catching this kind of behavior.
Conclusion
If clicking on shortened URLs has you nervous, then the Verify Redirect extension will help give you peace of mind and quite possibly save you from visiting a “less than reputable” website.
Links
Download the Verify Redirect extension (Mozilla Add-ons)
Download the Verify Redirect extension (Extension Homepage)
