Spam with XP

[Mike]

I just installed XP and now every once in a while I get a pop-up from
"Messenger Service" . These messages direct you to a porn site. I am
using the same programs now as I was before and I never got these
messages before. Any ideas on how to keep them from popping-up or why
I am now getting them?????

 

[Chris Lanier]

Stopping Advertisements with Messenger Service Titles
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=330904

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

This type of spam has become quite common over the past year, 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, such as the Blaster Worm that recently
swept cross the Internet. Install and use a decent, properly
configured firewall. (Merely disabling the messenger service, as some
people recommend, only hides the symptom, and does almost nothing to
truly secure your machine.) And ignoring or just "putting up with"
the security gap represented by these messages 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

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?


Bruce Chambers

--
Help us help you:



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

 

[Guest]

It seems you did a subscribtion in a porno site or in a
site shared its data base with a porno site anyway you
can fix that easily by go to your msn messenger tools
then options then privacy and check near the Only people
on my allow list can see my status and send me messeages.
now you will not receive from these porno site anymore
but take care its mean nooone can send messeage to you if
he or she isnt in your contact list.

 

[Guest]

-----Original Message-----
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.

Say what?
What kind of spin is that? That's like saying a bullet
just alerts you that you're not wearing body armor,and if
you were wearing it, the bullet wouldn't be an issue.
The fact is that the messenger service is a gaping
security hole and it needs to be disabled. It serves no
purpose what-so-ever.(Can you say "net send"?) What was MS
thinking when they left that enabled by default?
Especially in the XP Home edition. Good Lord. Talk about
brain farts.
I do agree that a good firewall is an absolute necessity,
but not the stock one that comes with XP. Get a firewall
that lets you know when programs are trying to access the
internet to send OUT stuff too.
And having an updated and utilized anti-virus program is a
must. This, along with a good "2-way" firewall and
disabling the messenger service will go a long way in
helping keep a PC secure. Well, better add some spyware
and adware detectors too.

 

[purplehaz]

security hole and it needs to be disabled. It serves no
purpose what-so-ever

<snip>

For network administrators, system administrators, and IT professionals,
among others, the messenger service is a tool that is used all the time. It
is a valuable tool and serves many purposes. I use it every single day.

 

[David Candy]

What security hole. It's a networking service. It shouldn't be exposed to the public intrernet. None of the networking protocols should be. Your computer is wide open to the world because you didn't configure it correctly. If you share your C drive I can access it by guessing your username /password (I can guess mike as a user name for the first poster - that gives me 1/2 of what I need to know). The administrator account is another one I can probably guess.

Messenger isn't the security hole, it's allowing the internet to access MS Networking.

Type Configuring WINS in help and disable NetBIOS over your internet connection. A firewall will also block it but is like using an emergency parachute in preference to the main one. Most idiots who jump out of planes insist on both (they're not totally stupid).

Major AV programs use this service (not consumer AV).

 

[Guest]

-----Original Message-----



<snip>

For network administrators, system administrators, and IT professionals,
among others, the messenger service is a tool that is used all the time. It
is a valuable tool and serves many purposes. I use it every single day.

2 words--net send

But it still serves no purpose in the typical pc for the
home environment. Most consumers are not IT professionals.
Get a grip on reality. It should not be enabled by default.
It is a security breech, plain and simple. The IT
professionals can turn it on, the average person ("Joe AOL
user") has no use for it. Face it. It was a huge blunder
to leave it enabled by default.

 

[Guest]

-----Original Message-----
What security hole. It's a networking service. It

shouldn't be exposed to the public intrernet. None of the
networking protocols should be. Your computer is wide open
to the world because you didn't configure it correctly. If
you share your C drive I can access it by guessing your
username /password (I can guess mike as a user name for
the first poster - that gives me 1/2 of what I need to
know). The administrator account is another one I can
probably guess.The typical home pc has no use for that "service" and it
should not have been enabled by default. Simple as that.
Getting porn popups is hardly a networking "service". Try
to spin it anyway you like, it's still a "boner" to enable
that on the typical home pc; hence everyone (typical home
user) is disabling it as fast as possible, heck AOL is
even doing it for their users without telling them.
My computer is not wide open to the world by the way, and
I don't share my c: drive with script kiddies trying
dictionary attacks.

 

[David Candy]

In that case messenger can't popup. If you buy Innoculate (the real one) you'll have to read the log files to see if you are infected.

Those users disabling messenger are stupid.

Understand, if messenger can pop up, your computer is open to the world. It means exploits can be run. The problem is not Messenger. It is configuring your internet as a network connection. MS Networking is not designed to be, and is not suited to public access.

 

[Guest]

Ignore!!!

-----Original Message-----
It seems you did a subscribtion in a porno site or in a
site shared its data base with a porno site anyway you
can fix that easily by go to your msn messenger tools
then options then privacy and check near the Only people
on my allow list can see my status and send me messeages.
now you will not receive from these porno site anymore
but take care its mean nooone can send messeage to you if
he or she isnt in your contact list.
.

 

[purplehaz]

2 words--net send

But it still serves no purpose in the typical pc for the
home environment. Most consumers are not IT professionals.
Get a grip on reality. It should not be enabled by default.
It is a security breech, plain and simple. The IT
professionals can turn it on, the average person ("Joe AOL
user") has no use for it. Face it. It was a huge blunder
to leave it enabled by default.

You need to get a grip fool. Man you look like an idiot. Why do you think I
snipped your reply. I was replying to a specific foolish statement you made.
When did I ever say it should or should not by enabled by default. You said
it serves no purpose what so ever and I proved to you that it does. That is
as far as our discussion went. I never said it should be enabled, talked
about it, mentioned it, thought about it........ get my drift. READ WHAT I
POST NOT WHAT YOU WANT TO HEAR. You said it serves no purpose I showed you
it does. The discussion of whether it should be on or off by default was not
why I posted and if you bothered to read it correctly you'd would see that.
Ignorance is bliss, I guess.