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blocklist issue: cdn.shortpixel.io blocked

cdn.shortpixel.io is an image optimization CDN used by thousands of sites, mine amongst them and it seems recently cdn.shortpixel.io was added to the NextDNS ads & tracking blocklist so no images load at all.

My questions:

-> why was it added?

-> can this be reviewed?

 

frank (on pro plan ;-) )

19 replies

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    • NextDNs
    • 2 yrs ago
    • Reported - view

    This domain does not seem to be blocked by any blocklist, it does not even resolve. Are you sure about the spelling?

      • frank_goossens
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      NextDNS indeed a typo, it's cdn.shortpixel.ai (e.g. https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/client/q_glossy,ret_img/https://boeken-jagers.be/wp-content/uploads/cover-mockup-1.png)

      • NextDNs
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      frank goossens this is blocked by many lists: adaway adguard-base-filter easylist energized-basic energized-blu energized-blu-go energized-regional-extension energized-ultimate goodbye-ads nextdns-recommended steven-black

      • frank_goossens
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      NextDNS the question remains; why was it added to the default nextdns list? shortpixel is not an ad service not a tracking company and the cdn.shortpixel.ai domain is solely used to optimize images and the block in your own default blocklist thereby breaks images on lots of sites?

      • Hey
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      frank goossens I just wanted to share this with you even tho you didn't tag me 

      https://maltiverse.com/hostname/cdn.shortpixel.ai

      That is probably why it's blacklisted by many filters, a lot of malware, malicious and phishing sites hit this website this it's deemed to be suspicious and yeah that might just be why it's blacklisted if not exactly why it's blacklisted. 

      • frank_goossens
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Hey scary to see that malicious use of a benign service can render the service suspicious and have all usage of it blocked as a result .. :-/

      • Hey
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      frank goossens it's actually the kinda the norm, if they want to push ads to their malicious websites using Google that gets tagged quicky, most services for ads have havy control over them so they find the ones that can be abused and abuse it as much as possible. I mean logically it makes sense for them to do this but yeah has negative returns for the users. 

      • frank_goossens
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Hey so should Shortpixel & similar platforms use the same blocklists in order not to provide service to blocklisted domains?

      • Hey
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      frank goossens That is way above my knowledge, you can ask them if they could check the sites that their CDN is used on and blacklist the ones that abuse it. But I lack the knowledge to know the inner workings of how their system works. 

      • frank_goossens
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      Hey yeah, not talking about specifics, but generally; should SAAS companies check domains for services they provide, using one of the many blocklists, to avoid getting flagged as suspicious themselves?

      • Hey
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      frank goossens I would think so, they could tag New Domains like how NextDNS does with NRD blocking but instead of blocking they could tag them and see what images they are using on their website. They might not be able to check everything but at least checking those and like you said comparing their list of websites that use their service to a/few blocking filters should help with their image. But like I said before I'm just a random guy on the internet, no one actually knowledgeable so someone would probably have a better idea than mine. 

      • frank_goossens
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      @nextdns your feedback on the above would be appreciated ;-)

      • NextDNs
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      frank goossens they definitely should. There are even services for that.

      • frank_goossens
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      NextDNS only one open question; why was the domain added in "NextDNS Ads & Trackers Blocklist" in the first place? because malware/ adware was using it making it suspicious? or because other lists had them?

    • Chris.6
    • 2 yrs ago
    • Reported - view

    If you mean shortpixel.ai, I know that I whitelisted it a while ago, because some blocklists wrongly included it.

    That's why I don't like Energized lists a lot, they have many false positives. Better lists, like Lightswitch05, oisd, notracking or 1Hosts (Lite), don't include it. 

    • frank_goossens
    • 2 yrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Indeed cdn.shortpixel.ai as Chris writes, sorry for the confusion.

    • SLCW
    • 2 yrs ago
    • Reported - view

    If it's just the one host, add it to your allowlist on the NextDNS control panel.

      • frank_goossens
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      SLCW It is, but my point is that at the moment nextdns is blocking images that are served through that image-optimization service's domain on thousands of sites. Me adding it to the allowlist does not solve the problem for other nextdns users (some of whom now cannot see images on e.g. my site).

      • SLCW
      • 2 yrs ago
      • Reported - view

      frank goossens NextDNS isn't blocking anything. You are when you select a blocklist that includes this host. The whole point is that you are given a wide variety of lists, and can choose whatever is best for you and your circumstances. Because while this might be an annoyance to you, it's not an issue for everyone. You have the tools to manage this problem (selection of lists, ability to whitelist a specific host), so there really isn't anything for NextDNS,
      or anyone else to do. If you really want to go all the way, you can also submit that host to various blocklists. Almost all of them provide a mechanism for submitting hosts to be removed.

Content aside

  • 2 yrs agoLast active
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