pop-ups

[Ted Gervais]

How can I find the pop-up controls I have on my PC.
I am told I still have some pop-ups in place?? How do I find them??

[Chris Lanier]

Windows XP doesnt come with any pop-up blockers. you have to buy/download
one from a third-party company.

you might be talking about the pop-ups you get from the Messenger Service

Enable the Windows XP Firewall to stop them.
http://www.microsoft.com/WindowsXP/home/using/howto/homenet/icf.asp

"Ted Gervais" > wrote in message
...
> How can I find the pop-up controls I have on my PC.
> I am told I still have some pop-ups in place?? How do I find them??
>
>

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

There are at least three varieties of pop-ups, and the solutions
vary accordingly. Which specific type(s) is troubling you?

1) Does the title bar of these pop-ups read "Messenger Service?"

This particular "sales method" is strikingly similar to the
"protection" rackets offered to small businesses by organized
criminals. Yes, it's a scam; no reputable business would need to
resort to extortion. Particularly since they're trying to sell you a
type of protection that is already available to you free of charge.

This type of spam has become quite common over the past few
months, and unintentionally serves as a valid security "alert." It
demonstrates that you haven't been taking sufficient precautions while
connected to the Internet. Your data probably hasn't been compromised
by these specific advertisements, but if you're open to this exploit,
you may well be open to other threats. Install and use a decent,
properly configured firewall. (Merely disabling the messenger
service, as some
people recommend, only hides the symptom, and does little or nothing
to truly secure your machine.) And ignoring or just "putting up with"
these
messages and the problem they represent is particularly foolish.

Messenger Service of Windows
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;168893

Messenger Service Window That Contains an Internet Advertisement
Appears
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=330904

Stopping Advertisements with Messenger Service Titles
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp

Blocking Ads, Parasites, and Hijackers with a Hosts File
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm

Oh, and be especially wary of people who advise you to do nothing
more than disable the messenger service. Disabling the messenger
service, by itself, is a "head in the sand" approach to computer
security. The real problem is _not_ the messenger service pop-ups;
they're actually providing a useful, if annoying, service by acting as
a security alert. The true problem is the unsecured computer, and
you've been advised to merely turn off the warnings. How is this
helpful?

Equivalent Scenario 1: Somewhere in a house, a small fire starts,
and sets off the smoke alarm. You, not immediately seeing any
fire/smoke, complain about the noise of the smoke detector, and are
advised to remove the smoke detector's battery and go back to sleep.

Equivalent Scenario 2: You over-exert your shoulder at work or
play, causing bursitis. After weeks of annoying and sometimes
excruciating pain whenever you try to reach over your head, you go to
a doctor and say, while demonstrating the motion, "Doc, it hurts when
I do this." The doctor, being as helpful as some of your respondents,
replies, "Well, don't do that."

I'm beginning to think that the people deliberately posting such
bad advice are hacker-wannabes who have no true interest in helping
you secure your system, but would rather give you a false sense of
security while ensuring that your computer is still open to
exploitation.

2) For regular Internet pop-ups, you might try the free 12Ghosts
Popup-killer from http://12ghosts.com/ghosts/popup.htm or Pop-Up
Stopper from http://www.panicware.com/. Myself, I use Norton Internet
Security, which, in addition to containing Norton Anti-Virus and
Personal Firewall, also blocks many of the pop-up adds on the
Internet.

3) For pop-ups caused by some sort of "adware" and/or "spyware,"
such as Gator, Comet Cursors, or Bonzai Buddy, that you've
deliberately installed, two products that are quite effective at
finding and removing scumware are Ad-Aware from www.lavasoft.de and
SpyBot Search and Destroy from http://security.kolla.de/. Both have
free evaluation versions.


Bruce Chambers

--
Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH


"Ted Gervais" > wrote in message
...
> How can I find the pop-up controls I have on my PC.
> I am told I still have some pop-ups in place?? How do I find them??
>
>

[Ted Gervais]

Bruce -

Thanks very much for your response to my query. It was very informative and
instructive and I plan on keeping a copy of it for further study.

HOwever, my question was really not about installing any form of pop-up
controls but rather on how can I find such controls on my system. I am
trying to get rid of any and all of them (pop-up controls) so I can install
some update software from McAfee. Their installation process/system tells
me that I have pop-controls in place and therefore cannot install updates??

I have taken off all pop-up controls that I can think of and yet I am still
regected by McAfee. I am stumped.

Anyways - Thanks again for your assistance and I will continue to snoop
around to see what and where I may have additional pop-up controls.






Bruce Chambers wrote:

> Greetings --
>
> There are at least three varieties of pop-ups, and the solutions
> vary accordingly. Which specific type(s) is troubling you?
>
> 1) Does the title bar of these pop-ups read "Messenger Service?"
>
> This particular "sales method" is strikingly similar to the
> "protection" rackets offered to small businesses by organized
> criminals. Yes, it's a scam; no reputable business would need to
> resort to extortion. Particularly since they're trying to sell you a
> type of protection that is already available to you free of charge.
>
> This type of spam has become quite common over the past few
> months, and unintentionally serves as a valid security "alert." It
> demonstrates that you haven't been taking sufficient precautions while
> connected to the Internet. Your data probably hasn't been compromised
> by these specific advertisements, but if you're open to this exploit,
> you may well be open to other threats. Install and use a decent,
> properly configured firewall. (Merely disabling the messenger
> service, as some
> people recommend, only hides the symptom, and does little or nothing
> to truly secure your machine.) And ignoring or just "putting up with"
> these
> messages and the problem they represent is particularly foolish.
>
> Messenger Service of Windows
> http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;168893
>
> Messenger Service Window That Contains an Internet Advertisement
> Appears
> http://support.microsoft.com/?id=330904
>
> Stopping Advertisements with Messenger Service Titles
>
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
>
> Blocking Ads, Parasites, and Hijackers with a Hosts File
> http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm
>
> Oh, and be especially wary of people who advise you to do nothing
> more than disable the messenger service. Disabling the messenger
> service, by itself, is a "head in the sand" approach to computer
> security. The real problem is _not_ the messenger service pop-ups;
> they're actually providing a useful, if annoying, service by acting as
> a security alert. The true problem is the unsecured computer, and
> you've been advised to merely turn off the warnings. How is this
> helpful?
>
> Equivalent Scenario 1: Somewhere in a house, a small fire starts,
> and sets off the smoke alarm. You, not immediately seeing any
> fire/smoke, complain about the noise of the smoke detector, and are
> advised to remove the smoke detector's battery and go back to sleep.
>
> Equivalent Scenario 2: You over-exert your shoulder at work or
> play, causing bursitis. After weeks of annoying and sometimes
> excruciating pain whenever you try to reach over your head, you go to
> a doctor and say, while demonstrating the motion, "Doc, it hurts when
> I do this." The doctor, being as helpful as some of your respondents,
> replies, "Well, don't do that."
>
> I'm beginning to think that the people deliberately posting such
> bad advice are hacker-wannabes who have no true interest in helping
> you secure your system, but would rather give you a false sense of
> security while ensuring that your computer is still open to
> exploitation.
>
> 2) For regular Internet pop-ups, you might try the free 12Ghosts
> Popup-killer from http://12ghosts.com/ghosts/popup.htm or Pop-Up
> Stopper from http://www.panicware.com/. Myself, I use Norton Internet
> Security, which, in addition to containing Norton Anti-Virus and
> Personal Firewall, also blocks many of the pop-up adds on the
> Internet.
>
> 3) For pop-ups caused by some sort of "adware" and/or "spyware,"
> such as Gator, Comet Cursors, or Bonzai Buddy, that you've
> deliberately installed, two products that are quite effective at
> finding and removing scumware are Ad-Aware from www.lavasoft.de and
> SpyBot Search and Destroy from http://security.kolla.de/. Both have
> free evaluation versions.
>
>
> Bruce Chambers
>
> --
> Help us help you:
> http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
> http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
>
> You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
> having both at once. -- RAH
>
>
> "Ted Gervais" > wrote in message
> ...
>> How can I find the pop-up controls I have on my PC.
>> I am told I still have some pop-ups in place?? How do I find them??
>>
>>

--
Ted Gervais
Coldbrook, Nova Scotia Canada

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

Beats me. ;-} Pop-ups are not an integral part of the OS, so
there is no built-in mechanism for disabling them. Have you installed
SpyBot Search & Destroy and used it to "immunize" your system from
adware? Have you asked McAfee's tech support? It does seem odd to me
that McAfee would require you to turn off security features in order
to install their products.

Bruce Chambers

--
Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH


"Ted Gervais" > wrote in message
...
>
> Bruce -
>
> Thanks very much for your response to my query. It was very
informative and
> instructive and I plan on keeping a copy of it for further study.
>
> HOwever, my question was really not about installing any form of
pop-up
> controls but rather on how can I find such controls on my system. I
am
> trying to get rid of any and all of them (pop-up controls) so I can
install
> some update software from McAfee. Their installation process/system
tells
> me that I have pop-controls in place and therefore cannot install
updates??
>
> I have taken off all pop-up controls that I can think of and yet I
am still
> regected by McAfee. I am stumped.
>
> Anyways - Thanks again for your assistance and I will continue to
snoop
> around to see what and where I may have additional pop-up controls.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Bruce Chambers wrote:
>
> > Greetings --
> >
> > There are at least three varieties of pop-ups, and the
solutions
> > vary accordingly. Which specific type(s) is troubling you?
> >
> > 1) Does the title bar of these pop-ups read "Messenger
Service?"
> >
> > This particular "sales method" is strikingly similar to the
> > "protection" rackets offered to small businesses by organized
> > criminals. Yes, it's a scam; no reputable business would need to
> > resort to extortion. Particularly since they're trying to sell
you a
> > type of protection that is already available to you free of
charge.
> >
> > This type of spam has become quite common over the past few
> > months, and unintentionally serves as a valid security "alert." It
> > demonstrates that you haven't been taking sufficient precautions
while
> > connected to the Internet. Your data probably hasn't been
compromised
> > by these specific advertisements, but if you're open to this
exploit,
> > you may well be open to other threats. Install and use a decent,
> > properly configured firewall. (Merely disabling the messenger
> > service, as some
> > people recommend, only hides the symptom, and does little or
nothing
> > to truly secure your machine.) And ignoring or just "putting up
with"
> > these
> > messages and the problem they represent is particularly foolish.
> >
> > Messenger Service of Windows
> > http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;168893
> >
> > Messenger Service Window That Contains an Internet Advertisement
> > Appears
> > http://support.microsoft.com/?id=330904
> >
> > Stopping Advertisements with Messenger Service Titles
> >
>
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
> >
> > Blocking Ads, Parasites, and Hijackers with a Hosts File
> > http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm
> >
> > Oh, and be especially wary of people who advise you to do
nothing
> > more than disable the messenger service. Disabling the messenger
> > service, by itself, is a "head in the sand" approach to computer
> > security. The real problem is _not_ the messenger service
pop-ups;
> > they're actually providing a useful, if annoying, service by
acting as
> > a security alert. The true problem is the unsecured computer, and
> > you've been advised to merely turn off the warnings. How is this
> > helpful?
> >
> > Equivalent Scenario 1: Somewhere in a house, a small fire
starts,
> > and sets off the smoke alarm. You, not immediately seeing any
> > fire/smoke, complain about the noise of the smoke detector, and
are
> > advised to remove the smoke detector's battery and go back to
sleep.
> >
> > Equivalent Scenario 2: You over-exert your shoulder at work
or
> > play, causing bursitis. After weeks of annoying and sometimes
> > excruciating pain whenever you try to reach over your head, you go
to
> > a doctor and say, while demonstrating the motion, "Doc, it hurts
when
> > I do this." The doctor, being as helpful as some of your
respondents,
> > replies, "Well, don't do that."
> >
> > I'm beginning to think that the people deliberately posting
such
> > bad advice are hacker-wannabes who have no true interest in
helping
> > you secure your system, but would rather give you a false sense of
> > security while ensuring that your computer is still open to
> > exploitation.
> >
> > 2) For regular Internet pop-ups, you might try the free
12Ghosts
> > Popup-killer from http://12ghosts.com/ghosts/popup.htm or Pop-Up
> > Stopper from http://www.panicware.com/. Myself, I use Norton
Internet
> > Security, which, in addition to containing Norton Anti-Virus and
> > Personal Firewall, also blocks many of the pop-up adds on the
> > Internet.
> >
> > 3) For pop-ups caused by some sort of "adware" and/or
"spyware,"
> > such as Gator, Comet Cursors, or Bonzai Buddy, that you've
> > deliberately installed, two products that are quite effective at
> > finding and removing scumware are Ad-Aware from www.lavasoft.de
and
> > SpyBot Search and Destroy from http://security.kolla.de/. Both
have
> > free evaluation versions.
> >
> >
> > Bruce Chambers
> >
> > --
> > Help us help you:
> > http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
> > http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
> >
> > You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
> > having both at once. -- RAH
> >
> >
> > "Ted Gervais" > wrote in message
> > ...
> >> How can I find the pop-up controls I have on my PC.
> >> I am told I still have some pop-ups in place?? How do I find
them??
> >>
> >>
>
> --
> Ted Gervais
> Coldbrook, Nova Scotia Canada

[Ted Gervais]

Bruce Chambers wrote:

> Greetings --
>
> Beats me. ;-} Pop-ups are not an integral part of the OS, so
> there is no built-in mechanism for disabling them.

Right. I understand that. I had a few of them installed - including SpyBot
and have taken them all off. Now McAfee still thinks I have some of them
installed?

> Have you installed
> SpyBot Search & Destroy and used it to "immunize" your system from
> adware? Have you asked McAfee's tech support?

I have tried contacting McAfee for support but they are the hardest people
to reach. I finally sent a note off to their Webmaster. Hopefully he will
pass it along to whom it concerns.

> It does seem odd to me
> that McAfee would require you to turn off security features in order
> to install their products.

Yes. Strange indeed.


>
> Bruce Chambers
>
> --
> Help us help you:
> http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
> http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
>
> You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
> having both at once. -- RAH
>
>
> "Ted Gervais" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> Bruce -
>>
>> Thanks very much for your response to my query. It was very
> informative and
>> instructive and I plan on keeping a copy of it for further study.
>>
>> HOwever, my question was really not about installing any form of
> pop-up
>> controls but rather on how can I find such controls on my system. I
> am
>> trying to get rid of any and all of them (pop-up controls) so I can
> install
>> some update software from McAfee. Their installation process/system
> tells
>> me that I have pop-controls in place and therefore cannot install
> updates??
>>
>> I have taken off all pop-up controls that I can think of and yet I
> am still
>> regected by McAfee. I am stumped.
>>
>> Anyways - Thanks again for your assistance and I will continue to
> snoop
>> around to see what and where I may have additional pop-up controls.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Bruce Chambers wrote:
>>
>> > Greetings --
>> >
>> > There are at least three varieties of pop-ups, and the
> solutions
>> > vary accordingly. Which specific type(s) is troubling you?
>> >
>> > 1) Does the title bar of these pop-ups read "Messenger
> Service?"
>> >
>> > This particular "sales method" is strikingly similar to the
>> > "protection" rackets offered to small businesses by organized
>> > criminals. Yes, it's a scam; no reputable business would need to
>> > resort to extortion. Particularly since they're trying to sell
> you a
>> > type of protection that is already available to you free of
> charge.
>> >
>> > This type of spam has become quite common over the past few
>> > months, and unintentionally serves as a valid security "alert." It
>> > demonstrates that you haven't been taking sufficient precautions
> while
>> > connected to the Internet. Your data probably hasn't been
> compromised
>> > by these specific advertisements, but if you're open to this
> exploit,
>> > you may well be open to other threats. Install and use a decent,
>> > properly configured firewall. (Merely disabling the messenger
>> > service, as some
>> > people recommend, only hides the symptom, and does little or
> nothing
>> > to truly secure your machine.) And ignoring or just "putting up
> with"
>> > these
>> > messages and the problem they represent is particularly foolish.
>> >
>> > Messenger Service of Windows
>> > http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;168893
>> >
>> > Messenger Service Window That Contains an Internet Advertisement
>> > Appears
>> > http://support.microsoft.com/?id=330904
>> >
>> > Stopping Advertisements with Messenger Service Titles
>> >
>>
>
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
>> >
>> > Blocking Ads, Parasites, and Hijackers with a Hosts File
>> > http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm
>> >
>> > Oh, and be especially wary of people who advise you to do
> nothing
>> > more than disable the messenger service. Disabling the messenger
>> > service, by itself, is a "head in the sand" approach to computer
>> > security. The real problem is _not_ the messenger service
> pop-ups;
>> > they're actually providing a useful, if annoying, service by
> acting as
>> > a security alert. The true problem is the unsecured computer, and
>> > you've been advised to merely turn off the warnings. How is this
>> > helpful?
>> >
>> > Equivalent Scenario 1: Somewhere in a house, a small fire
> starts,
>> > and sets off the smoke alarm. You, not immediately seeing any
>> > fire/smoke, complain about the noise of the smoke detector, and
> are
>> > advised to remove the smoke detector's battery and go back to
> sleep.
>> >
>> > Equivalent Scenario 2: You over-exert your shoulder at work
> or
>> > play, causing bursitis. After weeks of annoying and sometimes
>> > excruciating pain whenever you try to reach over your head, you go
> to
>> > a doctor and say, while demonstrating the motion, "Doc, it hurts
> when
>> > I do this." The doctor, being as helpful as some of your
> respondents,
>> > replies, "Well, don't do that."
>> >
>> > I'm beginning to think that the people deliberately posting
> such
>> > bad advice are hacker-wannabes who have no true interest in
> helping
>> > you secure your system, but would rather give you a false sense of
>> > security while ensuring that your computer is still open to
>> > exploitation.
>> >
>> > 2) For regular Internet pop-ups, you might try the free
> 12Ghosts
>> > Popup-killer from http://12ghosts.com/ghosts/popup.htm or Pop-Up
>> > Stopper from http://www.panicware.com/. Myself, I use Norton
> Internet
>> > Security, which, in addition to containing Norton Anti-Virus and
>> > Personal Firewall, also blocks many of the pop-up adds on the
>> > Internet.
>> >
>> > 3) For pop-ups caused by some sort of "adware" and/or
> "spyware,"
>> > such as Gator, Comet Cursors, or Bonzai Buddy, that you've
>> > deliberately installed, two products that are quite effective at
>> > finding and removing scumware are Ad-Aware from www.lavasoft.de
> and
>> > SpyBot Search and Destroy from http://security.kolla.de/. Both
> have
>> > free evaluation versions.
>> >
>> >
>> > Bruce Chambers
>> >
>> > --
>> > Help us help you:
>> > http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
>> > http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
>> >
>> > You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
>> > having both at once. -- RAH
>> >
>> >
>> > "Ted Gervais" > wrote in message
>> > ...
>> >> How can I find the pop-up controls I have on my PC.
>> >> I am told I still have some pop-ups in place?? How do I find
> them??
>> >>
>> >>
>>
>> --
>> Ted Gervais
>> Coldbrook, Nova Scotia Canada

--
Ted Gervais
Coldbrook, Nova Scotia Canada

[foamy]

In article >,
Ted Gervais > wrote:

>Bruce Chambers wrote:
>
>> Greetings --
>>
>> Beats me. ;-} Pop-ups are not an integral part of the OS, so
>> there is no built-in mechanism for disabling them.
>
>Right. I understand that. I had a few of them installed - including SpyBot
>and have taken them all off. Now McAfee still thinks I have some of them
>installed?


Perhaps search the registry and delete any and all references to them. Also
search your computer for any mention and delete.

Jim