Twitter Link Shortener Bug

When links appear in Tweets, Twitter shortens them with their t.co shortener. The service is not optional--Twitter forces everyone to use it.

It's too bad it doesn't work properly.

Here's a link I wanted to share:

I Tweeted it and it was shortened, but a reply said it didn't work.

When I go to the t.co link:

Twitter breaks the embedded spaces (%20) by adding a second layer of URL-encoding to the already URL-encoded link, converting the percent signs (%) to %25, a URL-encoded percent sign. This breaks the link.

Spaces are common in filenames and URLs now. Twitter should stop breaking them.

Posted: 1-10-16 6:10 am