Last week I wrote
The trick is to add “+” to the end of the Bitly URL to see whats behind it without clicking on it. A couple of people emailed me to ask if the that worked with other URL reducing services.
TinyURLs..

The technique is to add “+” to the end of the Bitly URL to see whats behind it without clicking on it. A couple of people emailed me to ask if the that worked with other URL reducing services. If you see it in other places, it has actually been used without approval.

Heres a video summary of how to see whats behind a TinyURL without really clicking on the link.

The trick is to include a “+” to the end of any TinyURL address in order to arrive on a safe TinyURL page that reveals what the original link was that got reduced. You can then choose if you wish to click through to the location or not.
If you wish to try this with a TinyURL, tinyurl.com/emkns9a8 will lead you to the page for the Practical Ed Tech Virtual Summer Camp, but adding a “+” at the end of that TinyURL will take you to the page where you can see the initial link without clicking it.

Ive tried the “+” trick with a bunch of other URL reducing tools and TinyURL is the just one besides Bitly that Ive discovered it to work with..
Whats the trick?

This post initially appeared on FreeTech4Teachers.com. It has been used without consent if you see it somewhere else. Websites that routinely steal my (Richard Byrnes) work include CloudComputin, TodayHeadline, and 711Web.

Applications for EducationAs I composed recently, developing good digital citizenship and cyber safety skills is something that everyone ought to be assisting our trainees do. Revealing them little suggestions like this one to avoid clicking on suspicious links is one of the manner ins which we can help our trainees build their digital citizenship and cyber security abilities.