How to Enable Hotlink Protection in cPanel

Hotlinking is a common issue that website owners face, where other websites directly link to your website's images, videos, or other media files, using up your bandwidth and resources without your permission. This can slow down your website and increase your hosting costs. In this guide, we will show you how to enable hotlink protection in cPanel to prevent this from happening.

Step 1: Log in to cPanel

First, log in to your cPanel account using your username and password.

Step 2: Locate the "Hotlink Protection" Option

Once you are logged in, scroll down to the "Security" section and locate the "Hotlink Protection" icon.

Step 3: Enable Hotlink Protection

Click on the "Hotlink Protection" icon to access the hotlink protection settings. You will see an option to enable hotlink protection for your website. Click on the "Enable" button to turn on hotlink protection.

Step 4: Enter Allowed Domains

Next, you will need to enter the domains that are allowed to hotlink to your website's content. This includes your own domain and any other trusted websites that you want to allow to hotlink to your content.

Step 5: Customize Error Messages

You can also customize the error message that will be displayed to users who try to hotlink to your content. This can be done by entering a URL for a custom error page or using the default error message provided by cPanel.

Step 6: Save Settings

Once you have entered the allowed domains and customized the error message, click on the "Save" button to save your hotlink protection settings.

Step 7: Test Hotlink Protection

Finally, test the hotlink protection by trying to hotlink to one of your website's images from a different domain. If hotlink protection is enabled correctly, the image should not display on the other website.

Conclusion

Enabling hotlink protection in cPanel is a simple yet effective way to prevent other websites from using your content without permission. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can protect your website's bandwidth and resources, ensuring optimal performance for your visitors.