Oh FFS LJ!

[schmevil]

LiveJournal has started snooping on outbound clicks, sliently redirecting outbound links through "outboundlink.net." This is enabled even for paid users, and the opt-out is so hidden/out of the way that what they're doing is simply unconscionable.

Here's an example link: http://www.amazon.com/Applied-Cryptography-Protocols-Algorithms-Source/dp/0471117099/
Javascript is used to make the url in the status bar appear normal when you hover over it, until you actually click on the link. To see that it is actually being redirected for tracking, right-click on the link and copy the url, then paste it into something like notepad.

Fortunately, there is a way to opt out:

1. Open the Admin Console at http://www.livejournal.com/admin/console/
2. Execute the following command: set opt_exclude_stats 1


I also recommend adding the following to your ad-blocker:

* outboundlink.net
* l-stat.livejournal.com/js/pagestats/dRev.js


Read more: caffeinepuppy's post. Also, vichan has started collecting links.

Comments

[neotoma]

Signal boosted, because REALLY.

This is one of the many reasons I'm going to be posting my fic to my DW from now on, with only announcements posted to LJ -- I really don't want them getting any revenue from me if I can help it.

[musesfool]

Thanks for the info.