Password-Protected Links

The new feature, soon available, and called password-protected links will allow users to create and manage links that can only be accessed with a password. It is a useful tool for protecting sensitive information and content. Password-protected links can be used to share files, websites, and other resources with a specific group of people, without worrying about them being accessed by unauthorized individuals.

How it works:

To create a password-protected link, users will need to specify a password when using the link creation API call. Rebrandly will encrypt the password and store it in its database. When a user clicks on a password-protected link, they will be prompted to enter the password. If the password is correct, they will be taken to the final content.

Analytics:

Rebrandly provides two metrics for password-protected links:

1. Total clicks on each link: The number of times a password-protected link is clicked.
2. Total password successful submissions for accessing the final content: The number of times the password is successfully entered for a password-protected link.

Rebrandly does not currently provide an open rate percentage metric for password-protected links, but users can calculate it offline by dividing the number of successful password submissions by the total number of clicks. Note: this metric will be available in the Rebrandly dashboard in the future.

Use cases:

• Sharing sensitive documents
• Sharing exclusive content
• Protecting beta testing
• Restricting access to surveys
• Preventing spam
• Restricting access to PHI (Protected Health Information)

Examples:

• A company could use password-protected links to share a new product launch announcement with its press list.
• A school could use password-protected links to share student grades with parents.
• A healthcare provider could use password-protected links to share medical records with patients. (HIPAA Compliance)
• A government agency could use password-protected links to share public records with researchers.
• A non-profit organization could use password-protected links to share fundraising appeals with donors.
• Accounting provider could use password-protected links to share sensitive accounting informations.

Password policy:

Password must include:

• at least eight characters
• at least one letter
• at least one number
• at least one special character

FAQ:

1. Can I use password-protected links in every workspace? 
   - Yes, you don’t need to create them in a specific Workspace.
   
   

2. Can I decide to use password-protected links with Campaign API or with Evergreen API?

   - Yes, you can use the API call you prefer.
   
   

3. I have 20K Evergreen API links/mo and 10K Campaign API links/mo. Can I also have 5K password-protected links/mo?

   - Yes, but you have to upgrade adding 5K password-protected links/mo to your subscription.
   
   

4. Can I add link expiration to the links to provide an extra layer of security?

   - Yes, the link expiration feature is included in the Campaign API links, so you should first have that functionality, then you can create password-protected links with Campaign API specifying the TTL (Expiration).
   
   

5. I need to retrieve the password of a link, how do I do that?

   - Rebrandly doesn’t store raw passwords on the DB, in that case, you need to amend the link, submitting the new password as done in the link creation api buffer process.
   
   

6. Can I add the password to an already created link?

   - No, it’s not possible, you need to delete the link and re-created it by passing the password parameter.
   
   

7. Can I remove the password from a link?

   - No, you need to delete the link and re-create it without password
   
   

8. Can I change the password of a password-protected link?
   - Yes, you can always amend the password for your link.
   
   
9. Can I manage the password-protected link from my dashboard, once it has been created by API?
   Yes, you can manage the link as all the others but you can’t manage the password related functionality (this will be available with a next release).

This Article is About:

• How to create a link with a password
• Insert password in a link
• Protect sensitive information with a link

See Also: 

• How Does Link Expiration Work?
• How to Create a QR Code From Your Short Link
• Links Aggregated Reports