The problem of advertising programs being downloaded onto users machines without them knowing it is a scourge that is hitting all Internet users at the moment. This can manifest itself in either diallers coming onto your machine and automatically dialling up premium rate numbers at your cost or programs which can stop you viewing secure sites such as banking websites. These advertising programs can also cause pop up windows and change which page your computer visits when you first go onto the Internet.
Dealing with Pop-ups/Changes of home page/Automatic connecting
If you are finding you keep getting pop up windows coming up on your screen or the computer tries to connect to the Internet without asking you, the first thing we advise in these situations is to delete all cookies and temporary internet files on your computer. Please follow the instructions below on how to do this.
1. Click Start
2. Click Control Panel
3. Double Click on Internet Options
4. Click Delete Cookies
5. Click Delete files
6. Click OK
If you find that your home page has been changed by something you can also change this back to your preffered choice by following instructions 1-3 and then in the home page address typing in your preffered choice (e.g. https://www.suffolkonline.net)
If your Internet connection keeps connecting automatically then perform instructions 1-3, once on the Internet Properties page, click on connection along the top and make sure that “never dial a connection” is selected.
Google Toolbar
A very useful tool is the Google Toolbar which can block many pop up windows. Simply go to http://toolbar.google.com/ and click on Download Google Toolbar.
Click on Save and choose a place to download the file to. It will take 2-3 minutes to download. Once downloaded go to the place where you saved it to and then double click on it.
Go through the automatic install process and you should be more protected against pop up windows.
Diallers
If you are worried about diallers on your computer then the first piece of advice would be to check your system first. You can do this by following the instructions below.
1. Click Start
2. Click Control Panel
3. Double Click on Network Connections
4. If there is anything on the screen under the dialup connections screen which you don’t recognise (typically there should just be an icon for Suffolk Online or for whoever you are a subscriber with) then our advice is to delete it by right clicking on it with your mouse and then left clicking on delete.
Another advisable course of action is to contact your telephone provider and to block all premium rate numbers.
Ad-aware
The final and sometimes most useful solution is to download a free program called Ad-Aware. This is an industry standard in finding diallers or advertising programs on your computer which may result in pop up’s etc. Please follow the instructions below on how to download this and to run it.
1. Connect to the Internet
2. Go to the website http://www.download.com
3. In the search box, type in Ad-Aware and click Go
4. Click on the listing for Ad-aware build SE Personal Edition
5. On the box that comes up, click Save and choose a place to download the program to and then click save. It will take 15-20 minutes to download.
6. Go to the place where you saved the file to and double click on it. This will take you through the install process of the program.
7. Once installed click the Start button to start the scan of your machine. Once it has completed the scan it may come up with several items it finds on your computer. Simply continue the process on and quarantine the items.