If your community limits bio links, a web address in Bio saves only when it is your community’s own site or a site on the trusted links list. Other fields on the profile form are not checked this way.
Some communities limit the web addresses members can put in Bio. When that limit is on, saving a profile with a disallowed address fails, and the bio that was already stored stays as it is. A plain sentence with no web address always saves.
The allowed sites are the community’s trusted links list, the same list described in Add trusted links. A link to your community’s own site is always allowed, even when that list is empty.
Note: If a bio that contains any outside link saves, your community is not limiting bio links.
Save a link in your bio
Edit your profile and privacy settings explains how to open the form. The short path is:
- Sign in, then open your profile menu in the upper-right corner (your photo or name).
- Select Profile, then Edit profile. To edit someone else’s profile, open their profile and select Edit user.
- In Bio, write the address. On your profile page this text appears under About me. You can include
https://or leave it off.mystore.com/shopcounts as mystore.com. An email address such as name@example.com does not count as a link. - Select Save.
If the address is allowed, the profile saves. If it is not, the profile does not save, and a message appears with Bio.
Read the message
The message names one site. If Bio has more than one disallowed address, remove the one it names, save again, and read the next message.
| When | What Bio says |
|---|---|
| The trusted links list has sites on it | Your bio can only link to these sites: example.com. Remove the link to other.com. |
| The trusted links list is empty | Links are not allowed in your bio. Remove the link to other.com. |
The site names in the message are examples. Yours lists the sites on your community’s trusted links list, and the address Bevy refused.
Which addresses match
Your community’s own site matches even when it is not on the list. Every other site has to match a line on the trusted links list. www is its own site unless the line starts with *..
| Line on the trusted links list | What you can save in Bio |
|---|---|
example.com | example.com only. www.example.com is still blocked. |
www.example.com | www.example.com only. example.com is still blocked. |
*.example.com | example.com and every subdomain, including www.example.com. |
An address written as https://allowed-site.com@other-site.com is treated as other-site.com, not as the site before the @ sign.
Tip: This check looks at Bio only. A website field or a social profile field on the same form follows its own rules.
Choose the sites members can use
People who manage trusted links edit the list on the page titled External link allow list. Open a discussion and, under Moderate, select External link allow list. Add trusted links explains who can open that page and how to enter a site name.
Important: An empty list does two different things. In a discussion, members can still open an outside link after a short warning. In Bio, members cannot save an outside link at all, except a link to this community.
Fix a problem
| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| Bio will not save, and the message names a site. | Remove that address from Bio, or ask someone who manages trusted links to add the site. Save again. |
| The message lists allowed sites, and your address uses www or another subdomain. | example.com does not cover www.example.com. The list needs www.example.com or *.example.com. |
| The message says links are not allowed in your bio. | The trusted links list is empty. Until a site is added, Bio can link only to this community. |
| An older bio still shows a link you could not save today. | That text stays until someone changes Bio. Saving a city or another field leaves the existing Bio text in place. |