Need Expert Insight, code blocking pop-ups

[yhiayyrt]

Is there a way to disable all popups programatically with a dll or
registry setting?

 

[Adrienne Boswell]

Gazing into my crystal ball I observed (e-mail address removed) writing in

Is there a way to disable all popups programatically with a dll or
registry setting?

Download a good browser, Opera does this on the fly.

 

[J.O. Aho]

Is there a way to disable all popups programatically with a dll or
registry setting?

Enable the pop-up blocker in your browser, of course there are new ways
developed to get around pop-up blockers.

If you aren't happy with Firefox, you can try out SeaMonkey, Safir, Opera,
Konqueror, Galeon, Epiphany and a load of text based like elinks, links and
lynx, none of those text based will allow pop-ups.

Of course there are a load of browsers like Avant, which just a new GUI for
the MSIE, but of security reasons I would advice you to not touch those.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Is there a way to disable all popups programatically with a dll or
registry setting?

No, I know of no universal cure.

What specific kind of pop-ups are you seeing? There are at least
three varieties of pop-ups, and the solutions vary accordingly.

1) Does the title bar of these pop-ups read "Messenger Service?"

This type of spam has become quite common over the past few years,
and unintentionally serves as a valid security "alert." It demonstrates
that the computer user hasn't been taking sufficient precautions while
connected to the Internet. The user's data probably hasn't been
compromised by these specific advertisements, but if he/she's open to
this exploit, he/she may well be open to other threats, such as the
Blaster Worm that swept across the Internet years ago and the Sasser
Worm that followed shortly thereafter, both of which can still be
contacted. 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 the
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 the user 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 the user's been advised to merely turn off the warnings. How is
this helpful?

2) For regular Internet pop-ups, you might try the free 12Ghosts
Popup-killer from http://12ghosts.com/ghosts/popup.htm, Pop-Up Stopper
from http://www.panicware.com/, or the Google Toolbar from
http://toolbar.google.com/. Alternatively, you can upgrade your WinXP
to SP2, to install IE's pop-up blocker. Another alternative would be
to use another browser, such as Mozilla or Firefox, which has pop-up
blocking capabilities. (But I'd avoid Netscape; it carries too much
extraneous AOL garbage.)

3) To deal with pop-ups caused by any sort of "adware" and/or
"spyware,"such as Gator, Comet Cursors, Xupiter, Bonzai Buddy, or
KaZaA, and their remnants, that you've deliberately (but without
understanding the consequences) installed, two products that are
quite effective (at finding and removing this type of scumware) are
Ad-Aware from www.lavasoft.de and SpyBot Search & Destroy from
www.safer-networking.org/. Both have free versions. It's even
possible to use SpyBot Search & Destroy to "immunize" your system
against most future intrusions. I use both and generally perform
manual scans every week or so to clean out cookies, etc.

Additionally, manual removal instructions for the most common
varieties of scumware are available here:

PC Hell Spyware and Adware Removal Help
http://www.pchell.com/support/spyware.shtml

More information and assistance is available at these sites:

Blocking Ads, Parasites, and Hijackers with a Hosts File
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm

The Parasite Fight
http://www.aumha.org/a/parasite.htm

Neither adware nor spyware, collectively known as scumware,
magically install themselves on anyone's computer. They are almost
always deliberately installed by the computer's user, as part of some
allegedly "free" service or product.

While there are some unscrupulous malware distributors out there,
who do attempt to install and exploit malware without consent, the
majority of them simply rely upon the intellectual laziness and
gullibility of the average consumer, counting on them to quickly click
past the EULA in his/her haste to get the latest in "free" cutesy
cursors, screensavers, "utilities," and/or wallpapers.

If you were to read the EULAs that accompany, and to which the
computer user must agree before the download/installation of the
"screensaver" continues, most adware and spyware, you'll find that
they _do_ have the consumer's permission to do exactly what they're
doing. In the overwhelming majority of cases, computer users have no
one to blame but themselves.

There are several essential components to computer security: a
knowledgeable and pro-active user, a properly configured firewall,
reliable and up-to-date antivirus software, and the prompt repair (via
patches, hotfixes, or service packs) of any known vulnerabilities.

The weakest link in this "equation" is, of course, the computer
user. No software manufacturer can -- nor should they be expected
to -- protect the computer user from him/herself. All too many people
have bought into the various PC/software manufacturers marketing
claims of easy computing. They believe that their computer should be
no harder to use than a toaster oven; they have neither the
inclination or desire to learn how to safely use their computer. All
too few people keep their antivirus software current, install patches
in a timely manner, or stop to really think about that cutesy link
they're about to click.

Firewalls and anti-virus applications, which should always be used
and should always be running, are important components of "safe hex,"
but they cannot, and should not be expected to, protect the computer
user from him/herself. Ultimately, it is incumbent upon each and
every computer user to learn how to secure his/her own computer.

To learn more about practicing "safe hex," start with these links:

Protect Your PC
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/default.asp

Home Computer Security
http://www.cert.org/homeusers/HomeComputerSecurity/

List of Antivirus Software Vendors
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;49500

Home PC Firewall Guide
http://www.firewallguide.com/

Scumware.com
http://www.scumware.com/


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell

 

[yhiayyrt]

Thank you all for interesting responses. No, I am looking for a
simple integratable programmatic way, to stop just Internet Explorer
popups. I am wanting to integrate this solution however it can be
done, simple or advanced technique, into a larger application. Thank
you so much.

 

[Jonathan N. Little]

Thank you all for interesting responses. No, I am looking for a
simple integratable programmatic way, to stop just Internet Explorer
popups. I am wanting to integrate this solution however it can be
done, simple or advanced technique, into a larger application. Thank
you so much.

Use Firefox or Opera ;-)

 

[yhiayyrt]

Use Firefox or Opera ;-)

I know there has to be a better answer to my question. I am not
talking about causal use, I am talking about programming approaches
(code wise), to implement Internet Explorer *only* blocking within a
Microsoft based application architecture. Either standalone code in
any Windows compatible format like Visual Basic, or in any other MS
compatible language will suffice. If it requires support files to
make it work like DLL's that is OK. Thank you for your understanding.

Have a very nice upcoming week. Thank you.

 

[Bernhard Sturm]

I know there has to be a better answer to my question. I am not
talking about causal use, I am talking about programming approaches
(code wise), to implement Internet Explorer *only* blocking within a
Microsoft based application architecture. Either standalone code in
any Windows compatible format like Visual Basic, or in any other MS
compatible language will suffice. If it requires support files to
make it work like DLL's that is OK. Thank you for your understanding.

so there are still people out there developping something for IE6.0?
amazing... It's a bit like riding on Titanic after she hit the iceberg
while cleaning up the kitchen.

cheers
bernhard

 

[Adrienne Boswell]

Gazing into my crystal ball I observed Bernhard Sturm

so there are still people out there developping something for IE6.0?
amazing... It's a bit like riding on Titanic after she hit the iceberg
while cleaning up the kitchen.

No, it's more like cleaning up the Titanic's kitchen once she hit the
iceberg.

 

[Bernhard Sturm]

Gazing into my crystal ball I observed Bernhard Sturm


No, it's more like cleaning up the Titanic's kitchen once she hit the
iceberg.

arrghh.. thanks... that's what I wanted to say. My English is simply
crap. I speak English in the same way like IE blocks pop-ups.

thanks
bernhard

 

[yhiayyrt]

I didn't see a IE 7.0 newsgroup. Is there a better forum for this
type of question?

 

[John Hosking]

I didn't see a IE 7.0 newsgroup. Is there a better forum for this
type of question?

Folks posting IE7 questions to m.p.w.i.ie6.browser are regularly pointed to
microsoft.public.internetexplorer.general. MS made some IE6-specific
groups, but haven't done it for IE7. Guess they don't figure this version's
going to last. ;-)

Have you never even read m.p.w.i.ie6.browser before posting there?

If you don't quote the previous posts, people won't know what "this type of
question" is. Now you have to start all over in m.p.i.general. Maybe you
could lurk there a while first.

 

[yhiayyrt]

If you don't quote the previous posts, people won't know what "this type of
question" is. Now you have to start all over in m.p.i.general. Maybe you
could lurk there a while first.

Thank you that makes sense! I have expanded this thread. Hopefully
the entire thread will catch someones eye.

Best wishes

 

[yhiayyrt]

THANK YOU

Is there a way to disable all popups programatically with a dll or
registry setting?

 

[John Hosking]

On Sun, 02 Sep 2007 23:14:43 -0000, (e-mail address removed) wrote:

[Followups set to microsoft.public.internetexplorer.general]

Thank you that makes sense! I have expanded this thread. Hopefully
the entire thread will catch someones eye.

Well, you're welcome, but you haven't acheived anything by "expanding this
thread." In fact, all you've done by adding another newsgroup to the list
is fed your post to a new NG where nobody knows anything about your
question. Even I don't remember what it was. ;-)

Follow these steps:

Do a search in microsoft.public.internetexplorer.general for your topic of
interest.

Lurk in microsoft.public.internetexplorer.general for a while and watch the
discussions.

Make a new post to microsoft.public.internetexplorer.general and only that
NG. No, wait a minute, that's too much like that nasty multi-posting that
everybody hates. Here, I'll help you. I'm setting followups on this post to
microsoft.public.internetexplorer.general. What you can do is go to that
NG, reply to my post with a description of your question, and hope someone
can satisfy your desires. I know IE7 has a popup-blocker, but that's all I
know about it.

GL. HTH.

 

[yhiayyrt]

You can email me privately also.

I know there has to be a better answer to my question. I am not
talking about causal use, I am talking about programming approaches
(code wise), to implement Internet Explorer *only* blocking within a
Microsoft based application architecture. Either standalone code in
any Windows compatible format like Visual Basic, or in any other MS
compatible language will suffice. If it requires support files to
make it work like DLL's that is OK. Thank you for your understanding.

.......most of the time when there is a answer to a technical question
where there is a definite answer like my question --- you will usually
find someone in net groups who will be helpful.... traveled by smarter
than yours truly, tech-gurus. I have made lots of long term
connections this way and the sharing and collaboration is what these
groups are part of being about. Hopefully, someone will be more than
helpful and share specific procedures/code/examples, that will enable
me to programatically implement my goal.

Thank you, have a good evening.

Rebecca.

 

[burntmatch2]

Hopefully, someone will be more than helpful and share specific

procedures/code/examples, that will enable
me to programatically implement my goal.

use FireFox or Safari you stupid bitch

 

[Unknown]

There's no call for that!

use FireFox or Safari you stupid bitch

 

[Jonathan N. Little]

You can email me privately also.

Not normally how *public* newsgroups work

No, there is nothing you can do with HTML to specifically help MSIE
block popups. Anything you could could do would require an addon and
modification of the application itself and this is not relevant to alt.html

 

[passssifit]

Please stop cross posting this non-sense. You have found a dead-end
from your approach Rebecca. Go away.