Social media link not detected

[agx]

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Hi,
I've added https://social.phosh.mobi/@phosh as social media link to our fediverse instance to our org but in contrast to other profiles it is rendered as plain link

rather than showing the mastodon icon:

)

as can be seen on other profiles. Is there a way to fix this?

[agx]

Thanks for providing some details.

The rel="me" is used in mastodon to verify links in profile data. I've not seen that on profile pages, check e.g.

https://fosstodon.org/@phosh

Can you tell me more about the exact request made and the checked contents so that gotosocial can add it if it makes sense (or maybe one can add gotosocial to the expression)? (I only see a GET /@phosh HTTP/2.0 but would be interesting to see what happens afterwards).

[RoxyBasicNeedBot]

I'll explain why your Fediverse link isn't showing the Mastodon icon on GitHub and how to fix it.
Why It's Not Working
GitHub only recognizes specific well-known Mastodon instances for the Mastodon icon. Your instance social.phosh.mobi is not in GitHub's hardcoded list of recognized Mastodon/Fediverse servers, so it's being displayed as a generic link instead of with the Mastodon icon.
The Problem
GitHub's social media link recognition works like this:

Twitter/X, LinkedIn, YouTube, etc.: Recognized by domain
Mastodon: Only recognized if the instance is in GitHub's internal allowlist
Your custom instance doesn't match their list, so it gets treated as a generic URL

Possible Solutions

1. Use a Well-Known Instance (If Possible)
   If you have a presence on a major Mastodon instance like:

mastodon.social
fosstodon.org
mastodon.online
Other large instances

GitHub will likely recognize these and show the Mastodon icon.
2. Report to GitHub ⭐ Best Option
Since this is a limitation in GitHub's system, you should:

Open a GitHub Support ticket or contact GitHub Support
Or create a discussion in GitHub Community Discussions
Request that they add support for:

Your specific instance: social.phosh.mobi
Or better: Generic Mastodon/Fediverse instance detection via rel="me" links or other standards

3. Workaround in Profile Description
   While not ideal, you could:

Mention your Fediverse handle in your organization description
Use a Mastodon verification link in your website
Add it to your README with a custom Mastodon badge

Example of What to Report
You could file feedback like this:

Subject: Support for custom Mastodon/Fediverse instances in organization social links
Description:
Currently, GitHub only recognizes certain hardcoded Mastodon instances for displaying the Mastodon icon in organization social media links. Our instance https://social.phosh.mobi/@phosh is displayed as a generic link instead of with the Mastodon icon.
Request:
Please either:

Add social.phosh.mobi to the recognized Mastodon instances list
Implement generic Fediverse/ActivityPub instance detection using standard protocols (like rel="me" verification or WebFinger)

This would provide better consistency for organizations using self-hosted or smaller Fediverse instances.

Why This Happens
GitHub likely uses a allowlist approach for security and validation reasons:

Prevents abuse with fake "social media" links
Ensures icons match legitimate platforms
But creates limitations for decentralized platforms like Mastodon/Fediverse

Current Status
Unfortunately, there's no immediate fix you can apply yourself. This is a limitation on GitHub's side that requires them to either:

Add your instance to their list
Implement better Fediverse instance detection

The best action is to report this to GitHub so they're aware of the limitation and can potentially improve their Fediverse support.
Would you like help drafting a more detailed feature request to submit to GitHub?

[agx]

Thanks. Where would I file that issue?

[RoxyBasicNeedBot]

NOTHING TO SAY

[ashmeet07]

🐘 Social Media Icon Not Detected (Fediverse)

The reason your Fediverse link (https://social.phosh.mobi/@phosh) is displayed as a plain link instead of the Mastodon icon is due to a limitation on GitHub's side regarding Fediverse instance recognition.

The Problem

GitHub typically uses a list of known, recognized Mastodon instance domains to decide whether to display the specific icon.

• If you link to a profile on a major, well-known instance (like mastodon.social or fosstodon.org), GitHub is programmed to show the icon.
• Your instance (social.phosh.mobi) is likely not on GitHub's internal allowlist and therefore defaults to showing a generic URL.

How GitHub Detects Mastodon

GitHub attempts to validate the domain by checking the HTTP headers and <meta> tags of the linked profile page. A correctly recognized Fediverse instance usually exposes:

• rel="me" links in the profile's HTML.
• Application metadata (like application/ld+json blocks) that identifies it as a Mastodon or ActivityPub server.

If your self-hosted instance (running GoToSocial) does not match the exact metadata GitHub is looking for, the icon will not appear.

Solutions (Not Self-Fixable)

Unfortunately, there is no immediate fix you can apply to your GitHub profile settings. The solution requires action by GitHub:

1. Report the Issue: The best action is to open a GitHub Support ticket or create a feature request in the Community Discussions asking GitHub to either:
   • Add your specific instance (social.phosh.mobi) to their recognized domains list.
   • Implement better, generic detection logic for Fediverse/ActivityPub instances using standard verification protocols (rel="me", WebFinger, etc.).
2. Workaround: Until GitHub updates its list, the only workaround is to use a URL from a major instance that GitHub already recognizes, or simply accept the link as a plain URL.

[agx]

For others ending up here: I filed a ticket and Github informed me that they have no intention to improve the situation and will continue to rely on a hardcoded instance list for a federated system 😢

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