"Robert" said:
Try going to Administrative Tools, Services, and find the
messenger service. Open it and change it to manual. Then
stop the services. You really do not need this service
running anyway. Try running spyhunter. It seems to be
better than Ad-Aware.
That's really rather useless advice. Spyware scanners won't trigger on this
sort of pop-up, because it's part of Messenger Service, which is a valid
system service.
Disabling Messenger Service, too, is really not the cleverest of ideas.
It's rather like seeing your system pop up a sign that reads "your system is
open to hackers like me", and insisting the sign be removed, without first
blocking hackers.
Install a firewall. That stops the Messenger Service spam, and it also
blocks many hacker routes into your system, as well as the route that many
worms and viruses take. If you are seeing Messenger Service spam, it's
because your system is open to the whole world on some very dangerous ports.
Here's some instructions on how to close those ports by installing a
firewall:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
The benefit of continuing to run the Messenger Service is that you get
immediate notification (by the recurrence of spam) if your firewall ever
goes down.
Simply disabling Messenger Service leaves your machine open to hackers, but
without letting you know. Ask yourself what sort of person offers that as
"advice".
Alun.
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