Twitter announced that it is about to start wrapping all tweeted URLs in its t.co. URL wrapper.
“Tens of millions of links are tweeted on Twitter each day,” the company says. “Wrapping these shared links helps Twitter protect users from malicious content while offering useful insights on engagement. All links submitted within tweets and direct messages, regardless of length, will eventually be wrapped with t.co.”
@twitterapi
Twitter APIWe’re about to start wrapping all URLs regardless of their length with the t.co URL wrapper – http://t.co/WYZN445Y ^AM
1 hour ago via web · powered by @socialditto
A few months ago, Twitter started shortening all URLs automatically, leaving the domain names in tact. Personally, I thought this was a good strategy. “Since we show a shortened version of the original link, people will know which site the link points to,” Twitter’s Carolyn Penner said at the time. “This service also increases security. If users click links that are reported as malicious, we direct them to a page that warns them.”
These links were still assigned to a t.co link, but you could see the source of the link. Now, you’ll just have to trust Twitter I guess.
Interestingly enough, I just had a questionable direct message over the weekend, with a suspect URL that was wrapped in a t.co URL.