This disclosure generally relates to decoding links in a storage network, and specifically, but not by way of limitation, to providing secure content links for mobile devices.
Hotlinking (also known as inline-linking, leaching, or direct linking) involves linking a content object stored on a server by a first party to a webpage belonging to a second party. In one common scenario, the first party can provide webpage information via a web server that links to content objects stored by a Content Delivery Network (CDN). The content objects may include large media files, such as images and videos that can be more efficiently distributed by a CDN than by the first party's web server. The links in the webpage will direct the user's browser to the CDN, which can then retrieve the content objects to be displayed/played in the user's browser. The CDN will typically charge the first party for both the storage and delivery of its content. The more bandwidth that is used to provide content to users, the more the first party will be charged by the CDN.
When the second party engages in hotlinking, it copies the links from the first party's webpage and embeds the links in its own webpage. When users display the second party's webpage, the users' browsers will be directed to the content stored in the CDN by the first party. The CDN will record the transmission of the content belonging to the first party without being able to distinguish between users following the original link of the first party and users following the copied link of the second party. This results in the first party being charged to source and provide content for the webpage of the second party. In some cases, approximately 30% of the first party's CDN costs may go to sourcing content for other parties webpages that are hotlinking the first party's content.