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A question for everyone but mainly (because I am considering switching back to Apple, is
anyone else being inundated by ads? I open Gmail and get ten ads instantly, two at a
time. I delete those and proceed with mail, only to be interrupted constantly
with more ads. All this started when a little gremlin switched me to Windows 11.
Is that the cause? I ask because an "expert" is coming this week to check out my
computer which seems to have gone haywire.
And, yes, I was unknowingly switched to Microsoft but that's another long
story that I'll skip for now. Only ask if Apple users are having this same plethora of
ads. I am considering buying an iPad and starting over.-
Sounds like spyware. Do you have a virus scan program on your computer?
Thank you for that idea. I just had my antivirus program installed last week. I'll skip
the long story but we think it was installed wrongly. That we will find out at end of this'
week. It is supposed to go off at noon each day (behind the scenes). It made no
announcements but maybe that's the way with "behind the scenes" programs.
I have never had so much trouble with a computer in my life and I know little or nothing
about how they work. Well, no use whining. Just work at it. Hazel W
Its gotta be the browser and/or OS calling these ads....
Im on IE6 (MyIE2) and I dont see any ads and when I use our apple laptop which has FF48,I dont see any on that either.... (But I dont use that enough to say for sure)
I see people all over the net complaining about sites blasting ads..... I dont think its the sites,its the stuff the user is using that is calling them......
I agree. We shall see what we find this weekend. I know what I am thinking but I'll
Most any browsers come with their own ad-blocking function these days but you can add the extension to whatever browser you are using and it should block all ads.
If there is an adware/spyware that is causing the ads, you are likely to see pop-ups and site redirections as well. Browsers do not show you ads, it is either caused by the site itself or some malware on your system.
Gmail itself reads your emails and detects keywords and based on those keywords in the messages, shows you relevant ads. That is why Gmail and most of their products are free. Same with Hotmail, MSN mail and Yahoo. Ublock will effectively block those ads without any functionality loss.
AV scanners are borderline useless when it comes to detecting browser hijackers and malicious extension and related registry keys. Your best best is to download free adwcleaner but don't run it yet.
First clear your browser cache/cookies, etc by holding down CTRL and SHIFT keys then pressing DEL key (see attached screenshot), include from the very beginning and check all the boxes except for password/login info. Then close your browser and any other running programs.
Now, either run a temp/junk file cleaner app if you have one. If not, at the very least, open Windows Explorer and in the address line on top, simply type %temp% and press ENTER. This will open up the TEMP folder for your user. Hold CTRL key and press A to select everything in there, then press DEL key to delete it all.
Now, locate adwcleaner you downloaded and RIGHT-click on it and select "Run as administrator" (see attached screenshot).
If it found any known malicious files, folders or registry keys, it will automatically check them by default.
The optional or vendor related stuff might still come up on the PUP (Potentially Unwanted Programs) list but you can ignore/leave them uncheck and click on "Next/Quarantine".
I attached a screenshot (ADWcleaner - Overview), where the result on the right (red arrow) shows a system with bunch of files and registry keys were detected and selected, and one from my own system (green arrow) where it came up clean but still offered to reset some of the basic system connection/network related stuff.
If your overall Internet speed is fine and you do not notice any abnormalities, you can skip this step.
Most any browsers come with their own ad-blocking function these days but you can add the extension to whatever browser you are using and it should block all ads.
If there is an adware/spyware that is causing the ads, you are likely to see pop-ups and site redirections as well. Browsers do not show you ads, it is either caused by the site itself or some malware on your system.
Gmail itself reads your emails and detects keywords and based on those keywords in the messages, shows you relevant ads. That is why Gmail and most of their products are free. Same with Hotmail, MSN mail and Yahoo. Ublock will effectively block those ads without any functionality loss.
AV scanners are borderline useless when it comes to detecting browser hijackers and malicious extension and related registry keys. Your best best is to download free adwcleaner but don't run it yet.
First clear your browser cache/cookies, etc by holding down CTRL and SHIFT keys then pressing DEL key (see attached screenshot), include from the very beginning and check all the boxes except for password/login info. Then close your browser and any other running programs.
Now, either run a temp/junk file cleaner app if you have one. If not, at the very least, open Windows Explorer and in the address line on top, simply type %temp% and press ENTER. This will open up the TEMP folder for your user. Hold CTRL key and press A to select everything in there, then press DEL key to delete it all.
Now, locate adwcleaner you downloaded and RIGHT-click on it and select "Run as administrator" (see attached screenshot).
If it found any known malicious files, folders or registry keys, it will automatically check them by default.
The optional or vendor related stuff might still come up on the PUP (Potentially Unwanted Programs) list but you can ignore/leave them uncheck and click on "Next/Quarantine".
I attached a screenshot (ADWcleaner - Overview), where the result on the right (red arrow) shows a system with bunch of files and registry keys were detected and selected, and one from my own system (green arrow) where it came up clean but still offered to reset some of the basic system connection/network related stuff.
If your overall Internet speed is fine and you do not notice any abnormalities, you can skip this step.
Thank you. I am sure it is Malware. Antivirus protection not installed right. We will take
Thank you. I am sure it is Malware. Antivirus protection not installed right. We will take
care of that this weekend.
What AV software are you going to use?
Hopefully, it is not Norton or McAfee!
Like I said, very few AV programs can handle browser related malware or malicious extensions.
Run a scan with your AV app but I urge you to go thru the entire process I mentioned in my last post as well.
Good luck!
Because most of those who have come were not experts. Avoiding "brand names"
cuts my story short but I currently have a flawed "new" (because I am not sure it was )
computer. Nothing but trouble from it from Day One. Not much longer. I have plans.
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