Hotlink protection is an essential security measure for websites using a CDN. Along with increased cybersecurity, hotlink protection also offers improved performance by reducing the amount of bandwidth consumed by origin servers. We recommend enabling hotlink protection on your website for optimal website security and performance.

I. Introduction 

II. What is Hotlink Protection? 

III. How Does EdgeNext’s Hotlink Protection Work?  

IV. Supported File Extensions for Hotlink Protection  

V. Advantages of Hotlink Protection  

VI. The Drawback of Using Hotlink Protection 

VII. Where Should Hotlink Protection NOT be Used? 

VIII. How to Allow Hotlinking to Specific Images? 

IX. Will Hotlink Protection Affect SEO? 

X. The Best Use Cases for Hotlink Protection 

XI. Conclusion  

I. Introduction 

Hotlink protection is an important security measure for any website that uses a Content Delivery Network (CDN). It prevents other websites from linking to images hosted on your domain, saving you bandwidth and increasing the security of your site. This blog post will look at hotlink protection in more detail, including what it is and how EdgeNext’s hotlink protection works. We will also discuss the advantages of hotlink protection and why you should use it for improved security and performance on your website.   

II. What Is Hotlink Protection?  

Hotlink protection is a process used by Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) to protect online imagery from being hot-linked or used without permission. When visitors request images from your domain, hotlink protection ensures that the request does not originate from an unauthorized website. This prevents other sites from hotlinking to your images and using them without permission.

III. How Does EdgeNext’s Hotlink Protection Work?  

EdgeNext’s hotlink protection works by monitoring requests for images on your domain. When an image is requested, EdgeNext checks to ensure the request did not originate from an unauthorized site. If it did, hotlink protection blocks the request, preventing the image from being displayed on the other site.

IV. Supported File Extensions For Hotlink Protection  

When you enable hotlink protection on EdgeNext, it will protect the following file extensions: gif, ico, jpg, jpeg, and png.   

V. Advantages of Hotlink Protection  

There are several advantages to using hotlink protection for your website.  

1. Enhance Security: Hotlink protection enhances the security of your website by blocking requests from sites that attempt to hotlink images hosted on your domain. This deters malicious actors from stealing or misusing your content.
2. Optimize Performance: In addition to improved security, hotlink protection also reduces the amount of bandwidth consumed by your origin server. When websites hotlink to images hosted on another site, they consume a portion of that site’s bandwidth without permission. By preventing hotlinking with hotlink protection, you can significantly reduce the amount of bandwidth used by other sites.   

VI. The Drawback of Using Hotlink Protection 

The main drawback of hotlink protection is that it can block legitimate requests for images hosted on your domain. This can cause images not to be displayed correctly on some websites, resulting in a poor user experience. Additionally, hotlink protection may interfere with crawling bots such as Googlebot, preventing them from accessing and indexing your content. Overall, hotlink protection is an important security measure, but it should be used cautiously to ensure optimal performance for visitors to your website.

 VII. Where Hotlink Protection Should Not be Used 

Hotlink protection should not be used if you expect legitimate requests from other websites for the images hosted on your domain. For example, if you have frequently shared or embedded content in other sites, hotlink protection could result in those images not displaying correctly or at all. Additionally, hotlink protection should not be used if you rely on web crawling bots (such as Googlebot) to index and rank your content – hotlink protection may interfere with these requests. Ultimately, hotlink protection should be used with caution to ensure optimal performance and security for visitors to your website.

 VIII. How to Allow Hotlinking to Specific Images? 

Hotlink protection can be configured to allow hotlinking for specific images or file types. To enable hotlinking, you need to add an Allow-From directive in your hotlink protection configuration settings. For example, if you want to allow hotlinking from a specific domain (e.g., example.com), you will add the following directive: ‘Allow-From example.com.’ You can also configure hotlink protection to whitelist specific image extensions (e.g., JPEG, PNG), allowing hotlinking those files only while blocking all other requests for content hosted on your domain. By adding these directives, you can ensure that hotlinked images are correctly displayed securely on sites outside your own.

IX. Will Hotlink Protection Affect SEO? 

Hotlink protection does not negatively affect SEO if it is used with caution and configured correctly. If hotlink protection is enabled incorrectly, it could block legitimate requests from web crawling bots, preventing your content from being indexed and ranked in search results. Additionally, hotlink protection can reduce the amount of bandwidth consumed by other websites hotlinking to your images without permission – this can improve website performance and potentially boost your site’s ranking in search results. Ultimately, hotlink protection should be used carefully to ensure optimal performance for visitors to your website while protecting your content from malicious factors.

X. The Best Use Cases for Hotlink Protection 

Hotlink protection is ideal for sites with large amounts of high-resolution imagery – such as photography portfolios or stock image libraries – that could be hotlinked and used without permission. Additionally, hotlink protection is helpful for sites that contain confidential information or copyrighted content that must remain secure and private. In such cases, hotlink protection can be a powerful tool to protect your images from being exploited by others. Lastly, hotlink protection is also an effective way to reduce the amount of bandwidth and resources consumed due to hotlinking to your images without permission. By enabling hotlink protection on your website, you can effectively deter hotlinking while ensuring optimal performance for visitors to your site.

 XI. Conclusion  

In conclusion, hotlink protection is an important security measure for websites that use a Content Delivery Network (CDN). It prevents other sites from hotlinking to images hosted on your domain, saving you bandwidth, and computing resources and improving your site’s overall security. With hotlink protection enabled, you can rest assured that malicious actors cannot steal or misuse your content. Additionally, due to lower bandwidth and resource requirements, hotlink protection provides for the improved performance of your website. We recommend enabling hotlink protection to ensure optimal security and performance on your website.

We hope this blog post has provided valuable insights into hotlink protection and why it’s essential for sites using a CDN. If you have any questions about hotlink protection, please don’t hesitate to contact us at EdgeNext! Our security expert would be happy to answer any questions about hotlink protection or other security measures available to enhance and secure your web presence.

Kiya Wu

A dynamic digital marketer and visual designer with a strong foundation built over three years across various industries. Kiya's passion lies in creating powerful brand narratives, and engaging and influential brand communications that fortify relationships between brands and their audience.

See Full Bio