Hotlink File Prevention
by swinggraphics · Admin & Utilities
Also makes 1 other plugin · 610+ installs across the portfolio →
Simple hotlink protection for individual files in the media library.
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
D 53/100
Stale · Likely abandoned · Few reviews
Active installs
600+
≈660 estimated
Momentum
—
no download trend yet
Biggest opportunity: “admin”, “attachments” and “files” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
53 health vs 56 average across 5,896 Admin & Utilities plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →6.9%
of downloads still active
At least 600 of 8.7K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Admin & Utilities plugin keeps 0.6%, across 4,188 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Admin & Utilities plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
Removal-risk signals
28/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Not actively maintained. No update in about 2 years.
Details
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Room to improve
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 929 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.5.14; the current branch is 6.8
4.9★ over 7 reviews, smoothed to 4.20★ and held back under 25 reviews
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 929 days ago — ship an update; wp.org decays a listing's search weight after ~180 days.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
42
Momentum
Mixed: one swing, the rest drifting
+0.3
Velocity
places per keyword, 25d
25%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 25d
+0.3
Acceleration
recent half vs earlier
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| hotlink your tag | #8 | #8 | 0 |
| hotlink protection | #8 | #10 | 0 |
| admin your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| attachments your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| files your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| images your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
4 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 2 listed. 2 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- “admin”, “attachments” and “files” aren't earning a slot. You list them, but you're not in the first 24 results for those searches. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so free the slot for a search you can win.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 171 · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
No release in a yearHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
0
releases in the last 12 months
2.5y ago
latest release · v2.0.0 · 15 Apr 2024
3
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 100% run the current release. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “600+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 5 months ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 62% of the way through.
Install history since 4 Oct 2022
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Rick Cheney1.9y ago
THANK YOU for making this plugin. It works great EXCEPT your media library filenames cannot have hyphens in the filenames. Maybe they can have one or two hyphens, I don’t know because I didn’t test it but I found with four hyphens in the filename it didn’t work. This topic was modified 1 year, 8 months ago by Rick Cheney. Reason: spelling
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ twentytwelveuser2.4y ago
The plugin is activated, but other site still shows pictures from my site. RewriteRule 2017/03/Unity-Terrain03.png - [NC,L,F] Still there is no effect Added: The problem was in hosting settings – they disabled htaccess and used nginx. So I have to enable manual mode to turn on htaccess: Connect to the site with SSH Edit the config file for your site (example: ~/etc/httpd/php80/site-address.conf): <Directory /home/h12345678/site-address/docs/wp-content/uploads> AllowOverride All </Directory> 3. Use the plugin This topic was modified 2 years, 1 month ago by twentytwelveuser. This topic was modified 2 years, 1 month ago by twentytwelveuser.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Mike Oliver2.4y ago
I had an image on one of my website demos linking to over 100k sites, this plugin worked perfectly to block it.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ trinhthidien4.8y ago
Very good
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Wolfgang Hanus5.1y ago
After hours and hours of searching I finally found this plugin. It works great! I would like to see a feature that allows you to protect multiple media files at once. So that you don’t have to click on each file individually. Many thanks to the developers!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ user0982427345.4y ago
works perfect thanks!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Mostafa Shemeas5.5y ago
Excellent it blocks direct access to URL and that’s my goal
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 7.4.8 · WP 5.6
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Not measured yet for this plugin’s topics. Its tracked searches are not among the measured topics. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
4 of 8 pass · checked 31 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ! Says what it does Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the site.
- ✓ Has a FAQ 4 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 4 of 4 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ✓ Headings and lists 2 headings and 1 list.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,172 characters of description.
- ! Tags match the text Only 2 of 5 tags appear in the text ("admin", "attachments", "images" missing).
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-06-16 700+ → 600+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-06-15 600+ → 700+ up after 3 days in tier
- 2026-06-12 700+ → 600+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2026-06-10 600+ → 700+ up after 2 days in tier
- 2026-06-08 700+ → 600+ down after 427 days in tier
- 2025-04-07 800+ → 700+ down after 2 days in tier
- 2025-04-05 700+ → 800+ up after 34 days in tier
- 2025-03-02 800+ → 700+ down after 2 days in tier
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
File Upload Types by WPForms 40K+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags A -
Clean Image Filenames 30K+ installs · 4.3★ · 2 shared tags B -
Lightbox with PhotoSwipe 20K+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A -
SEO Friendly Images 10K+ installs · 3.2★ · 2 shared tags D -
Media Deduper 9K+ installs · 3.9★ · 2 shared tags C -
Download Attachments 8K+ installs · 4.4★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Hotlink File Prevention into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/hotlink-file-prevention" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Hotlink File Prevention — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Hotlink File Prevention: 600+ active installs, 4.9★ (7 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/hotlink-file-prevention
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