Fighting the Short URL Spam Peak

As a society, we've gone through the five psychological stages of change with spam. First it was denial, when everybody knew these messages were a pain but the authorities denied there was any issue. We got angry; we tried to bargain with the spammers, we were fearful of what would happen if spam levels kept increasing ... until now we have come to a sort of tacit acceptance of spam. We joke about its existence, laugh at the crazy people who think we believe that 'organs' can be enlarged with a failsafe cream, and the 'Nigerian princess' meme has worked its way into household conversation. But spam is not something that should just be accepted; it is actually a major method for spreading viruses and committing identity theft. Recently, spam sent via short URLs reached an historical peak. So, what are the URL shorteners doing about it? And what can you do about it?

The Short URL Spam Problem

Even at the beginning of 2010, spam sent with URL shortening services was still a minor problem. In April, there were a few blips on the radar as spammers began testing out the possibilities of spreading links with short URLs. In May, 0.5% of all spam email messages used shortened URLs, but in June the number skyrocketed to 2.5% and has remained high ever since.

Top URL Shorteners Take the Solution Into Their Own Hands

Reputable URL shorteners have been taking the problem into their own hands; telling spammers that their accounts will be suspended automatically after more than one violation. The target domain will be blocked from use with the shortening service, and if it is a revenue sharing URL shortener, the user account and any payouts would be suspended.

How users can help

There are two main ways that users can help prevent spam in general, and prevent becoming the victim of virus-laden spam:

Report spam that you receive to the URL shortening service. They will have the ability to block domains. Yes, this action is a drop in the ocean ... but if everyone does it, the spammers efforts will be seriously hampered.

Preview your short URLs: Use a URL un-shortening service such as PrevURL to check on links from people that you are unsure of ... or simply don't click links from any person that you don't personally know!