Messenger pop ups

M

Mark Salloway

Hi Gregory
To stop these messages you can activate the Windows XP firewall (this is
Microsoft's recommended way, and probably the best idea as it increases the
overall security of your machine online) on your system or disable the
messenger service on your computer, which is really just masking a bigger
issue. (This is not Windows Messenger or MSN Messenger related)
To disable the messenger service go to Start > Run and type Services.msc
You will now be presented with a list of services on your computer, move
down the list until you see 'messenger'. Double click on this, and set
Messengers Startup type to disabled and stop the service if it is running.

How to enable the Internet Connection Firewall
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/windowsxp/firewall.asp
 
K

Ken Blake

In
Gregory Wikle said:
How do you shut off the messenger service pop ups


Install a firtewall--either the free Windows one included, or a
better one like the free Zonealarm at www.zonelabs.com. That will
protect you against these and other intrusions.
 
P

Pam

I had the exact same problem, and although I agree with
all the post's, the only thing that finally worked was
turning off the "net send" feature, as mentioned below.

I have Ad-aware, Trend Micro firewall/AV, google pop up
blocker, and I blocked all of the NetBIOS ports on my
computer (135,137-139,445 & 593). Even after all of this,
I still kept getting the messenger pop ups. As a last
resort, I turned off messenger, even though I really
didn't want to. But it did solve the problem finally--I
couldn't take it anymore! Trend Micro told me that I
will still get my antiviral update notifications, even
though I disabled the feature it supposedly uses, we'll
see... Good Luck to you on this annoying problem!

Pam
 
B

Bruce Chambers

Greetings --

This type of spam has become quite common over the past several
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, 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
little or 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

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?


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
 

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