Hi mgkpwr448,

Stop Popups

Dealing with Unwanted Pop-ups at http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/nopopups.htm by mvps.org on popup's.

Popups are those annoying ads that pop up (or under) while you’re surfing the ‘net. There are three kinds of popups, and you’ll need to do three separate things to block them.

For Windows Users:

* Pop up windows created by web pages can be easily blocked by a third-party pop up blocker like the free Google Toolbar. However, the best way to block popups (and other nasties like browser hijackers) is not to use Internet Explorer at all. I recommend Mozilla at http://www.mozilla.org/products/mozilla1.x/ or Firefox at http://mozilla.org/products/firefox/ Both have built-in pop-up blocking but you must turn it on in the preferences.

* Pop-ups can also be created by spyware. These programs run in the background and can appear any time, even if you’re not online. I recommend Spybot Search & Destroy at http://safer-networking.org/ and AdAware at http://www.lavasoftusa.com/ to clean out spyware and block it in future. If you’re going to continue to use Internet Explorer also get Spyware Blaster at http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html to prevent browser hijacking.

* Finally, there’s a really annoying kind of pop-up that’s, in my opinion, a security flaw in Windows NT/2000/XP. These versions of Windows have a function called netsend that’s designed for system administrators. They can use it to communicate with all the computers on the network. Unfortunately, it can also be used by a spammer who can send a pop-up to ANY computer on the Internet. To block this form of Messenger spam you can turn off the Messenger service, or turn on a firewall. Enabling the built-in Windows XP firewall will block this spam forever. Windows XP Service Pack 2 turns on the firewall by default.


Using Internet Explorer Safely

When security expert Steve Gibson of ShieldsUp at http://grc.com/ fame was on he told us he still uses Microsoft’s Internet Explorer in Windows, despite the security and spyware issues.

For Windows Users:

Here’s how Steve uses IE safely:

1. Under IE’s Tool menu open your Internet Options… click the Security tab, and set security for the Internet zone to High (slide the slider all the way to the top).

2. This will make a large number of sites unusable, but… when you get to a site that doesn’t work add its URL to the list of Trusted Sites. To do this open Internet Options… and click the Security tab again. Click the Trusted Sites icon and press the Sites… button. You can uncheck the box requiring https://. Try it now by adding http://*.windowsupadte.microsoft.com and http://*.windowsupdate.com this will make Windows Update work.

Only add sites you know are safe to your trusted list.

To prevent browser hijacking I recommend installing Spyware Blaster. (This is unnecessary if you have security set to high, but it’s useful just in case you accidentally give access to a bad site.)

UPDATE: Windows XP SP-2 adds a new zone to XP: My Computer, and locks it down. This is a very effective way to combat browser hijacking. Microsoft provides instructions for people who have not yet installed SP-2 herea at http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=315933 but it’s not for the faint of heart.

Although this will make Microsoft Internet Explorer a little more secure it will never be as secure as Mozilla and Firefox.

The best plan is to quit using Internet Explorer and use Netscape 7.2. It has a better popup blocker, and does not have nearly the security issues found in I.E. The mail program with Netscape is also better than Outlook. Overall a much better browser!
Mike