altermatt
Premium
join:2004-01-22
White Plains, NY
 ·Verizon Online DSL
| Safely Closing Pop-Up Boxes
Haven't seen this here and thought it might be useful to some:
An article on about.com discusses the fact that some pop-up boxes will surrepitiously install malware when the user clicks the "cancel" or "no" boxes, which I think is well-known, but also if the user clicks what appears to be the "x" to close the pop-up (security gurus have recommended using the "x" to close to avoid the more common first method of installation).
So it's recommended instead that "To really play it safe, you should right-click the pop-up ad in your taskbar and select "Close" from the menu. If you have a pop-up ad which is not listed on your taskbar, you may need to dive into the Task Manager to shut down the application or process behind the pop-up ad."
»netsecurity.about.com/od/popupsa···htm?nl=1
--
The truth of a thing is the feel of it, not the think of it. -- Stanley Kubrick |
|
HA Nut
Premium
join:2004-05-13
USA
1 edit | Good advice that many do not know about. I instructed my uncle about this (using Task Manager to kill a pop-up) just a couple of weeks ago. In his case, we "ended process" on the browser. |
|
Portmonkey
scurvy
Premium
join:2004-04-09
Southern IL
| reply to altermatt
Thank you. There have only been a few times I've seen a pop-up get past the pop-up blocker, and worried that it might be a little shady when it came to closing it. You've pointed out such a simple solution to deal with it, but it never crossed my mind.
--
Ninja of the Nasty |
|
GadgetsRme
R.I.P. dadkins
Premium
join:2002-01-30
Canon City, CO
1 edit | reply to altermatt
The keystroke combination "Alt+F4" will close the topmost browser window, in this case the pop up, safely.
edit punctuation.
--
Gadgets |
|
Doctor Four
My other vehicle is a TARDIS
Premium
join:2000-09-05
Dallas, TX
 ·AT&T U-Verse
1 edit | reply to altermatt
Killing such a popup (or a malicious redirect such as
Winfixer or MalwareScan, or any other malvertisement)
using the Task Manager is a useful alternative on systems
where you cannot install a hosts file, SpywareBlaster or
something similar, such as in a corporate environment or a
public terminal.
Or for that matter on systems where you do have admin access,
and encounter something new.
--
"The trouble with computers, of course, is that they are very sophisticated idiots." - Doctor Who (from Robot)
|
|
altermatt
Premium
join:2004-01-22
White Plains, NY
·Verizon Online DSL
| reply to altermatt
Glad this was helpful, and that it prompted other suggestions and comments. We use a number of legit sites that use pop-ups and therefore don't usually run a pop-up blocker, and have gotten so used to quickly x-ing out of any that are questionable that it takes some discipline (and my first cup of coffee  ) to remember to alt-f4 or task manager them out.
--
The truth of a thing is the feel of it, not the think of it. -- Stanley Kubrick |
|
bcastner
Premium,VIP,MVM
join:2002-09-25
Chevy Chase, MD
clubs:  | reply to altermatt
Very nice reminder.
My thanks.
Bill Castner |
|
