When we have a very long link and we need to send it via WhatsApp or any other platform, one option is to use a URL shortener. Basically, what it does is compress that long link into a much shorter one. A kind of redirection. Google has its own link shortener, but now it has decided to end this service. And yes, that will make all the links on the Internet with this shortener stop working.
It should be noted that this is a service that was launched in 2010, so it will be 15 years old when it is discontinued, which is expected to be in August 2025. Until then, the links will work completely normally. From that date on, many links will be broken and it will not be possible to access those web pages. This can be a problem for many.
Google removes its URL shortener
Google shortened links start with goo.gl. These are links that lead to any page and anyone can generate one. Logically, apart from being very useful in certain occasions, shortened links are also widely used by hackers to hide the real address and go unnoticed.
All of these shortened links will no longer be available as of August 25, 2025. That’s still over a year away, so there’s plenty of time to use alternatives. The problem? Many websites aren’t maintained so continuously. In fact, there will be many articles and websites from years ago that contain links to goo.gl. If you stumble upon such a page, it will no longer work.
This news may not come as a surprise, as Google decided to deactivate this service in 2018. That is, it no longer accepted new registrations, nor could existing users generate more shortened links. However, it decided to keep the existing links so that they would continue to function normally. That is what is changing now. As of August 23, 2024, the following message will appear, according to Google.
What to do as a user
So how can it affect you as an internet user? Basically, the way it could affect you is if you go to a website, click on a link that uses this type of Google shortened URL, and it no longer works. You won’t be able to access the website it was previously redirecting to, and you’ll be able to do a lot more.
If you have a website or any platform where you are using links of this type, what you can do is use alternatives. There are many and you have more than a year to prepare and adapt to this change. There are even anonymous URL shorteners, where you will not have to register to start using them.
In short, many links currently on the Internet, which depend on this Google service, will stop working in August 2025. If we take into account all the years in which it has been available, it is clear that there will be many links lost on the network and that they may cause problems starting next year, when they finally stop working. If you need these shorter links, you can use alternatives.
