Hotlinking facts for kids

Hotlinking is an internet term. It means showing a picture, video, or other file on your website by linking directly to where it's stored on someone else's website. This way, the file isn't actually on your site; it's just displayed from its original location.

When you hotlink, every time someone visits your website, the hotlinked file is loaded from the original website. This uses up the original website's bandwidth, which can cost the owner money. Because of this, many website owners use special files like .htaccess to stop hotlinking. Sometimes, they even replace hotlinked images with different ones to discourage others from doing it.

The original image or file might be owned by the website that hosts it. Using someone else's content without their permission, especially by hotlinking, might be against copyright rules.

What is Hotlinking?

Hotlinking is like borrowing something from a friend's house without asking, and then showing it off as if it's yours, but still making your friend pay for it. In the online world, it means using someone else's internet resources, like their pictures or videos, directly from their server.

Let's imagine this:

• Website A has a cool picture on its server.
• Website B wants to show that same picture.
• Instead of downloading the picture and putting it on its own server, Website B just links directly to Website A's picture.

So, instead of Website B using a link like:

• https://websiteB.com/path/to/image.jpg

It uses Website A's link:

• https://websiteA.com/path/to/image.jpg

This makes Website A pay for the bandwidth every time someone views the picture on Website B. This can make Website A's internet hosting costs go up a lot!

How to Avoid Hotlinking

If you have your own website, it's important to avoid hotlinking files from other sites. This helps make sure the original owner doesn't have to pay extra costs. It also means the file you link to won't suddenly disappear if the original owner removes it or blocks hotlinking.

Here are a couple of ways to avoid hotlinking:

Host Your Own Files

The best way to use an image or video from another website is to download it and then upload it to your own server. This means the file is stored on your website's own space. When you do this, your website loads the file directly from your server, which can even make your page load faster!

Use a Third-Party Host

If you don't have your own server space to upload files, you can use a special service called a "third-party host." For images, services like imgur let you upload your pictures. Then, you can link to the image from their service instead of the original website.

In both cases, always make sure you have the right to use someone else's content. This means getting permission from the owner or checking if the content is available under a special license, like a Creative Commons license.

Images for kids

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  A robot for kids.

See also

In Spanish: Hotlinking para niños