Commonly used for scams, carriers will frequently filter messages that contain shortened links and any significant volume can end with the number being blocklisted.
For business/promotional campaigns they don't want the end content obscured at all.
(This is from personal experience running SMS newsletter blasts, they really hate services like bit.ly)
That's really nice to know JoeCool, thanks! There's a fair amount of struggle with the carriers trust scores. Overall, there's an inclination to keep the SMS OTP (so that people don't create hundreds of accounts with the 2 free links) but offer the option to switch to email or WhatsApp once the link is created.
Basically every business/marketing email you receive works like this: Every link you click is personalized and tells the sender that it was you reacting to their message (and from where as well, thanks to GeoIP).
I can see the point in wanting to know whether your messages are reaching your target audience (or somebody else), but I don't really understand who would want to get that via SMS instead of via e.g. email? Email would be much cheaper.
Sounds like a great deal for anyone that feels like they're not receiving enough text/robocall spam. Sorry, OP, but I'm not sharing my phone number with a completely anonymous service. SMS aren't free, and I'd like to know how I'm paying for this in the end.
And what's up with the "Consent is not a condition of purchase" – what am I purchasing? Will I still get a text if I don't consent?
Update: Just saw the pricing page – why is this only visible when clicking the "profile" icon? It's very easy to miss. But at least there seems to be a business model. $1 per notification is extremely pricey though, in my opinion.
Yes! The pickle is that the system doesn't know when the link is sent and if it was sent via email/sms/..., only when it's created. Something that helps is a deny list of user agents on the server for obvious things (like when iOS messages previews the URL) that have kept known user agents over many years. The problem with spam filters is that they don't want you to know they are spam filters so the user agents are hard to pin down definitively.
Overall, that's why it gives the user 3 notifications. Hopefully, most folks will know something's off if they get a read seconds after emailing someone.
Send that link by email, and it will be visited by the email provider first.... I did the same many years ago (but by sending an email instead of SMS) and MS visited links I emailed to myself. But either way, it's a pretty good way to find someone's IP address.
sometimes i just don't have the energy to respond to someone, or read the link i had sent, i really dont need people using something like this in my life stressing me out further
"1. Collection of Your Information
We collect information, including:
Personal Data: Mobile phone number and other information you voluntarily provide."