80+ Pop Ups Problem

M

mrrogers

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Joined
Jan 1, 2004
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4
Hey.. my problem is this..

I get these random pop ups.. i dont have anything even open and i dont have kazaa. I had limewire when this happened (2 days ago) so i uninstalled it. Was still there. Then i thought it was AOL becuase in the URL it says 'aol'. Uninstalled AIM. And i still have it.

the link is:
I removed the link in case it is something malicious -- VolteFace

Please if you had this problem or can help me i really wish you would. Its a horrible prblem.

Thanks.
 
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You should download and run a program like AdAware or similar,
which will try to remove any spyware and advertising apps and
settings on your computer.

You may also have luck looking through the list of apps in
Add/Remove Programs and removing anything you do not
recognize.
 
Theres a better program called BPS spyware remover - when I scanned with adaware, it found 12, but with BPS it found 435

http://download.com.com/3000-2144-10187262.html?tag=lst-0-1

its a useful program
Limitations: 5-day trial :( but try it out

edit: also i heard that adaware itself contains spyware - please tell me if im right or wrong on this, i dont want to give out the wrong information
 
>when I scanned with adaware, it found 12, but with BPS it found 435

Some programs count different things as problems, BPS probably includes cookies, which i wouldnt worry about. You cant realistically stop them - so i wouldnt bother trying. It probably also wiped a number of useful cookies as well. It also depends upon what settings you use.

You probably installed the programs with limewire - but rarely does the ad's stop when the host program stops. But often the host program stops working - when the ad's are stopped.

Check out PestControl and HijackThis. Although unless you know what your doing, be very careful with the latter.
 
ive also noticed this:

say for example i'm using AOL instant messanger the active title bar becomes inactive without me doing anything.. i found out that hidden internet explorer windows come up. many windows (the longer = more).. i ran the bps program and it found cookies and registry spies. i deleted them but it still came up.

i used the pop up blocker but it said 'run-time error'... i soppose i should format my c drive? or reinstall windows? what do you all think?
 
I just ran the BPS program and it found a total of 117 cookies/files etc which were listed as either spyware cookies or programs.

I have ZoneAlarm Pro running on my laptop and I connect to the net via a Netgear router which has some form of protection on it.

You see I'm in the dark here:( How does this stuff get on my laptop if I have a firewall etc running?

Thnx
 
hog said:
I just ran the BPS program and it found a total of 117 cookies/files etc which were listed as either spyware cookies or programs.

I have ZoneAlarm Pro running on my laptop and I connect to the net via a Netgear router which has some form of protection on it.

You see I'm in the dark here:( How does this stuff get on my laptop if I have a firewall etc running?

Thnx
Click to expand...

Because of devious webmasters & the vulnerabilites they exploit...Malware/spyware can get on your computer without your permission in numerous ways..Browser hijacking has become ever more popular as well. If you visit a malicous website they can activate all types of things on your pc using various tricks, such as ActiveX, Java & Javascript, or from what I noticed lately self executing html pages...If you are careful what files you download and execute, you should also be careful what sites you visit...If your browser allows activeX scripting, this is the same thing as you downloading a file and running it...If it is malicious your in trouble, if it is spyware it can be easily installed on your pc without your knowledge of permission...I set my browser up to ask me for permission before activex scripting is allowed, as well as JavaScript, If I am unsure of the site, normally I choose not to let those scripts run...In the case of the self executing html scripts....not sure of that one...I would suggest to have a good anti-virus software installed...All of these are basically os/browser related...don't count on your firewall to offer you any protection from any of the above...plus if malware gets on your pc, you can bet the first attack will be against your trusted firewall, antivirus ect...

Good security related sites are: http://www.wilders.org & http://www.spywareinfo.com

Many types of tests are available at: http://www.wilders.org/free_services.htm

Wilders also has links to some great free anti-malware/spyware programs...worth checking out...

Spybot Search & Destroy is also a great program that finds all types of bad & unwanted things...

If your looking for a really good firewall that also helps protect you from some of the above mentioned problems the new version of Kerio Personal Firewall is awesome...check out: http://www.kerio.com/kpf_home.html
 
i just used spybot search and destroy.. it found some exploits and i removed them but i didnt let it finish because it was at this one thing and it wasnt going anywhere... so i let it go fully but it was stuck there....

i still get the hidden IE windows
 
Hi mrrogers, the site SpywareInfo.com has a great forum on it with people who are highly familier with finding all types of malware, hijackers ect...I highly recommend visiting them and posting a HijackThis log there...if you have something bad, chances are someone there will spot it for you, and give you instructions on removing it...It sounds to me as if it might be a Browser Hijacker Trojan....You can find a link for Hijack this off of their site:
http://www.spywareinfo.com
 
Thnx for that:)

I use my employer supplied laptop which come with the regularly updated SOPHOS anti virus. I use ZoneAlarm Pro when at home and so not protected by my employers firewall. I was informed about the allowing activex etc thing a while back and took notice of it.

Doh, just looking at my Opera setting I can't see anything re activex...any ideas folkes?
 
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hmmm...strange, it seems there is no option in Opera? I guess they are not concerned with these types of problems...I visited a site that uses activex using opera, and I received no warning that activex scripting had been used...I would suggest that you use another browser...Internet Explorer is good as you can set it up to ask for permission ect...With Opera it seems you can disable JavaScript & Java...but that really sucks if you ever wish to allow those to run on trusted sites...Netscape is also a fairly good browser, or even better Mozilla Firebird is pretty good as well...:)
 
Hey hog...Looks like I was wrong..I would cancel the download if you can...It appears as if neither Firebird or Netscape have the option to disable ActiveX, I thought they did...I mainly use IE...I thought both of them were smart enough to add the function...Sorry about that...Can you use Internet Explorer?
 
DOH!

I didn't like Mozilla so deleted it.

Just finished installing Netscape and found no ActiveX denial:(

I can get IE to work:(

When at work it uses a proxy config file. I disable this and whether I set to auto detect settings or not it just hangs:(

Thats why I have been using opera
 
I knew there was a reason I hated IE!

I just tried opening it up again only to get the hanging thing again!!!!!

So here I am back in Opera

Any ideas gurus? :(
 
Ok...sorry I don't think I had my head attached yesterday...Opera, Mozilla & Netscape do not support ActiveX...:rolleyes: It is only Java & JavaScript exploits that can be used against any of those browsers....And it does appear as if you can only disable or enable them....Although it is a pain...you may wish to use two browsers one with Java & JavaScript disabled, the other browser with it enabled....this way if you are unsure of a site you can use the safe browser...and if you want to have those features work... use the browser with the features enabled....Sorry about the confusion over the ActiveX...I haven't used those browsers in a while...:-\
 
Oh praise the Lord :)

I shall revert to Opera as I'm well used to using it now:) I have tightened the settings on it tho thanks to this post...

Thnx.

Oh I'm considering buying the full version of Bullet Proof Softs Spware/Adware remover which did a good job of finding the nasties on my laptop.

Does anyone have any other comments/contenders to add? :)
 
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