Edited by - The Wanderer on 5/18/2003 7:04:54 PM

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How about Win2k?

DenverDon

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1. Check your browser settings, and see if it will block popups. I use Opera, and it seems to block popup windows pretty well.

2. Use a spy removal program on a regular basis, and keep it updated. I use 'SpyBot - Search and Destroy'. It wipes out all sorts of tracking cookies, stealth Windoz registry settings, etc.

3. Use a personal firewall, which can block popups. I use ZoneAlarm Pro, which has settings to block web bugs, private headers, and banner ads, etc. The nice thing about ZoneAlarm Pro is that you can tune it for particular websites.

4. If have broadband, and have a hardware firewall or firewall/router, you can create a domain blocking list, which will block all the crap traffic at the firewall. (If you have broadband with no firewall, then your suicidal.)

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Hope this helps

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DenverDon, the KB article works for all versions of Windows NT -- 4.0, 2K and XP (Home and Pro).

What I would be more concerned with is the gaping hole in your firewall which is allowing this traffic in.

Go to http://www.grc.com and follow the links to ShieldsUP and see what it says. My guess is it will return the name of your computer, perhaps any shares or printers you have set up and the like.

The Windows Messenger service uses port 135 to communicate, and it may also use 137 and 139 for NetBIOS lookups, I don't recall off the top of my head.

In any event, AdAware ain't gonna help -- you need a firewall of some sort. If you're on a dial-up, download a free copy of ZoneAlarm and keep it running when you're on-line. It will block all incoming traffic and monitor outbound traffic as well.

If you have a cable modem, invest $100 in a hardware router. Linksys routers are as plug-and-play as they come... just remember to change the default password.

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Thanks for the info.

DenverDon

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Shutting off the Messenger service (not to be confused with Windows Messenger, the IM client) in Win@K is simple. Click Start, Settings, Control Panel. Go into Administrative Tools, click on Services. Scroll down until you find the "Messenger" service; open the properties box, and change the status to MANUAL. Click OK. While you're at it, you can right click on it and choose "STOP" (or just reboot)

HOWEVER, all this will do is stop the boxes from popping up, it will NOT do anything about the security risk of having an unsecured computer on the internet. All the security holes are still there; just the manifestation of them will be hidden.

Get a firewall. ZoneAlarm is free, use it.

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• US Robotics USR8000A - router, firewall, 4-port 10/100 switch, print server (about $65 at cdw.com)
• Netgear FM114P - router, firewall, 4-port 10/100 switch, print server, 802.11b wireless access point (about $160 at newegg.com)

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I checked out Hardwares link and followed all the directions. I also clicked on "block all messages" on my browser preferences. Strangely, I am still getting message popups. Went back to doublecheck and I seem to have the correct settings.

Also when I checked ZoneAlarm's site, they were charging $49.95.

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You can get the free version of Zone Alarm here.

Edited by - joeblow69 on 5/18/2003 5:10:11 PM

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Edited by - hardware on 5/19/2003 10:07:41 AM

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To me, running Zone Alarm, even on a dial-up, is not a bad thing. You are still vulnerable to attack on a dial-up; speed's not the issue... and the dial-up IP blocks are just as easily scanned as any other.

Just remember -- when you get a firewall (the ones GS recommended are great) CHANGE THE ADMIN PASSWORD. I can't tell you how many sites I've walked into, loaded a web browser, typed in the gateway address and typed the default Linksys password and gained entry into their system. :-\

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Dial-up IP blocks are easily scanned if they are from the public IP net. Smarter providers use private nets (see RFC 1918) which are inaccessible from outside the domain.

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You'd think they ISPs would play this up if this were the case. I know I'd rather use an ISP if they did this...

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As Bruce Schneier says "Security is a process, not a product."

The first step is to apply all security patches provided by your OS vendor. Microsoft makes a bunch of free tools for Windoz to analyze then download and apply patches.

I believe you absolutely need a personal firewall, even for dialup. ZoneAlarm has a free version.

For broadband, LinkSys has excellent products. NetGear also makes broadband routers with integrated firewalls with stateful packet inspection.

When you ready to dig deeper, try www.sans.org. They have a free "reading room" containing papers detailing security best practices.

Also, The Center for Internet Security (www.cisecurity.org)
provides a free OS security scoring tool, which will examine your OS and give you a list of vulnerabilities, and optionally lock it down. Use the CIS lockdown tools with caution, as they really lockdown the machine. My Windows2000 laptop takes much longer to startup and shutdown with the CIS tool applied, since its checking so many more things. Its fine once its booted though.

And remember, be careful out there ....

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Hope this helps.

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