XP Messenger Service, HELP!

[Tom]

The built-in messenger service in Windows XP (home edition)
seems to now be mainly used for evil. Dozens upon dozens
of times per day I get a pop-up through XP's messenger
service advertising something or other. How do I disable
or uninstall the messenger feature of XP? Thanks!

Tom Hrbek
Bloomington, Minnesota

P.S. I'm not referring to AOL Instant Messenger, or MSN
Messenger

 

[luds]

Tom....

Found this response further down from Jupiter Jones (MVP)

"These ads are using Messenger Service.
Messenger Service is a valuable tool many use.
Like many tools, it can be exploited.

No need to pay for the fix.
For Messenger Service ads:
You need to install or enable a firewall:
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=330904
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
Disabling Messenger Service can be a good idea, but it does not solve
the real problem.
The ads are not the real problem, the ads are only a symptom.
The real problem is open ports that allow unwanted traffic into the
computer.
Disabling Messenger does nothing for the open ports.
The firewall controls the traffic.

Internet Connection Firewall will not work if you have AOL.
AOL is not compatible with Windows XP Internet Connection Firewall
(ICF)
If you have AOL, you should contact AOL and/or get a 3rd party
firewall.

Disable Messenger Service:
Start/Control Panel, click Administrative Tools, click Services.
Go down to "Messenger".
Right click "Messenger" and select Properties.
Then under Start-up select DISABLE
Click OK and follow prompts"

This'll do the trick!

luds

 

[VANGER]

THIS IS SOMETHING I FOUND. HOPE IT HELPS.

What you're seeing is the Messenger service built-in to
Windows, *not* Windows Messenger
(which are two different things) which spammers are
exploiting -- this is not Microsoft, nor
can Microsoft control them anymore then they can control
spam to your e-mail inbox.

To get rid of these pop ups, you'll need to disable
the "Messenger Service", click Start,
then Run, enter "services.msc"and click OK. Scroll down
to "Messenger", select it,
right-click and then choose Properties. Under startup
type, choose 'Disabled' and then
choose the 'Stop' button. After the service is stopped,
click OK. Nothing in Windows or any
real third-party applications should be effected by this.
____________________________________________
Jonathan Kay
Windows MVP, Messenger
Associate Expert
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/
Messenger Resources - http://messenger.jonathankay.com

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

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 a 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. (Disabling the messenger service, as
some people recommend, only hides the symptom, and does nothing to
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 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 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. The only true way to secure the PC is to *properly*
configure the firewall; just installing one and letting it's default
settings handle things is no good. Unfortunately, this does require
one to learn a little bit more about using a computer than used to be
necessary.


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

 

[Alun Jones [MS MVP]]

THIS IS SOMETHING I FOUND. HOPE IT HELPS.

What you're seeing is the Messenger service built-in to
Windows, *not* Windows Messenger
(which are two different things) which spammers are
exploiting -- this is not Microsoft, nor
can Microsoft control them anymore then they can control
spam to your e-mail inbox.

Doing good so far...

To get rid of these pop ups, you'll need to disable
the "Messenger Service", click Start,
then Run, enter "services.msc"and click OK. Scroll down
to "Messenger", select it,
right-click and then choose Properties. Under startup
type, choose 'Disabled' and then
choose the 'Stop' button. After the service is stopped,
click OK. Nothing in Windows or any
real third-party applications should be effected by this.

Argh! No! Don't do this! I don't care what MVP told you this was a good
idea, it's not!

The ads in Messenger Service should serve as an alarm to you that packets
are being accepted from the Internet that should by all rights be reserved
for local network use only. These packets can not only be used to trigger
Messenger Service to display adverts, but can also be used to trigger
exploits in the system, allowing hackers to exert control over your
computer, to read data from it, write data to it, crash the system, and
generally make your day go somewhat sour.

Disabling the Messenger Service might stop the ads, but it doesn't stop any
of the packets, nor does it stop packets from being able to cause damage.
This is what you might call a "sticking your fingers in your ears and
closing your eyes" solution. It doesn't help. What you need is a firewall,
and believe it or not, Windows XP has a firewall already installed, you just
need to enable it . Visit
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
to find out how to do this.

And leave Messenger Service running - once you enable the firewall, it won't
display any more adverts, and you can rest comfortable in the knowledge that
if the firewall fails, you'll know within minutes, because all those
horrible adverts will be back.

Alun.
~~~~

[Please don't email posters, if a Usenet response is appropriate.]