What does "blocked::" mean in front of a link?

[John Gray]

I sent someone some links in a Word (2003) .RTF file which they allege didn't work, but they work at my end.

They are of the form

Code: Select all

blocked::http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWl0oZOSMnM

but I have no idea why this 'blocked::' field has been prefixed, nor why the unfortunate Mac user sees the links as empty. If in Word I select the link, right click and select Edit Hyperlink I see the URL in the field without the "blocked::" in front.

Does anyone have any clues about this? Thanks!

[Leif]

I see a similar thing in emails sometimes - see
Links in Outlook are prefixed with BLOCKED::

[HansV]

Did the recipient open the .rtf file directly from the e-mail message? If so, let them try saving the attachment to disk and open the saved version.

[John Gray]

Thanks, both! I can't see why copying a link should constitute a security risk, though...

[HansV]

In the past, Microsoft was accused of being too lax with respect to security problems. Nowadays, they're often being accused of being overly protective...

[Skitterbug]

I sent someone some links in a Word (2003) .RTF file which they allege didn't work, but they work at my end.

I confess - it was me that had this problem which isn't alleged but real.

This morning I saved a copy to file and opened it into MS Word for MAC SR1. The links still did not work and the boxes still appear empty. Then I decided to try the document in OpenOffice3. Bingo - the links show and open as they should. Guess the problem has to do with Microsoft Word! Live links work but some embedded links don't.

[HansV]

I'm glad you found a workaround!

[Skitterbug]

I'm glad you found a workaround!

Me too!