Annoying popups

  • Thread starter Thread starter Alex Wexler
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A

Alex Wexler

Ever since I've traded up from Microsoft ME to XP, I've
been plagued by annoying popups. I finally caved in and
visited one of the sites to download their software and I
learned that XP has a built in feature that enables these
people to send me these botthersome adverts. If this is
so, is there a way to safely disable the feature?

They also mentioned that there is a feature called
Spyware that allows outside parties to track what sites
I've visited on my computer. THey claim to be able to
disable this feature as well.

Now the cost of this service is minimal and a one time
only charge. However, I wonder if this is a scam to get
ignorant computer users like myself to pay for a service
that can be easily attained for free if I only knew what
to do.

Is there a way to restore my computer's privacy without
subscribing to an outside source?

Thanks
 
Ever since I've traded up from Microsoft ME to XP, I've
been plagued by annoying popups. I finally caved in and
visited one of the sites to download their software and I
learned that XP has a built in feature that enables these
people to send me these botthersome adverts. If this is
so, is there a way to safely disable the feature?

They also mentioned that there is a feature called
Spyware that allows outside parties to track what sites
I've visited on my computer. THey claim to be able to
disable this feature as well.

Now the cost of this service is minimal and a one time
only charge. However, I wonder if this is a scam to get
ignorant computer users like myself to pay for a service
that can be easily attained for free if I only knew what
to do.

Is there a way to restore my computer's privacy without
subscribing to an outside source?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Just enable the built-in firewall in XP.
 
Greetings --

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 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

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