Internet Security ABC - Pound Those Pop-Ups

Pound Those Pop-Ups

Advertising is part of what makes the internet a profitable investment for companies. Without advertising, in one form or another, the web simply could not be the free service it generally is. One form of advertising on the World Wide Web is the pop-up ad. This kind of advertising works when you open a certain website. As you open it, another window opens to display an advertisement. To close the advertisement, you either have to click on the ad or close the new browser window that has opened for you. You can also experience a version of this called a pop-under. This opens a window under your current browser window. This means you will not see it until the window you are using has been closed.

In the early days of the internet, simple banner ads on websites were profitable enough for

companies. However, as the internet increased in popularity, and the dot com crash of the nineties happened, banner ads began to stop generating the cash they once were. As a result, pop-up ads became popular. They are harder to ignore. These ads also have a higher click rate, and they are more difficult to close, making them that much more likely to close a sale.

The major users of pop-up ads are pornographic websites. Sometimes the pop-up ads can get a bit more persistent with these kinds of sites. Instead of a single window opening, multiple windows open. As the user attempts to close each window, another one opens. The only way to stop this is to close the browser or shut the computer down. Another more persistent type of pop-up is usually referred to as "mouse trapping." This type of ad fills your screen and removes all icons and menu bars so it is impossible to kill the ad. The only way to get rid of this ad is to shut the computer down, as access to other open windows, web pages, and programs is eliminated. The static image ad is also quite common. In this variation, the ad stays in one location as long as a particular program is open. This is most common with music programs and websites.

Working on the internet is not the only way to get pop-up ads. Some software programs have pop-up ads. If spyware has infected your computer, you may also be experiencing pop-up ads at random intervals.

Not only are these ads annoying, the more persistent forms of pop-ups ads can be damaging to your computer with improper shut downs of certain programs. Moreover, some of these ads can carry malware, which can be very harmful to your system. It is important to stop these ads at all costs, if for no other reason than to save your sanity.

There are several things you can do to combat pop-up ads. The first line of defense is your browser itself. A number of different companies make browsers that eliminate pop-up ads before they ever begin. Gecko-based browsers, including Mozilla Firefox and Netscape versions seven and eight, are very good at stopping pop-up ads before they even start. A Gecko-based browser is an open source web browser layout engine. It is considered to be the second most popular type of search engine layout. Other companies that make browsers that eliminate pop-up ads include America Online and Internet Explorer. Not all versions of these browsers, though, support pop-up blocking technology, so it is important to check before you install.

Another thing you can do to combat pop-up ads is install an add-on program. Several toolbars and software programs claim to block pop-ups. Yahoo's toolbar, MSN's toolbar, and Google's toolbar all claim to block pop-ups. The freeware programs KillAd and NoAds close the windows before they open. Other software programs including Super Ad Blocker, Pop-Up Stopper, Pop-Up Sentry, and Proximitron work in a similar fashion.

Many users are unaware of pop-up blocking technology. As a result, people continue to fight with pop-up ads on a daily basis. Armed with this new knowledge, though, you can be among the intelligent and begin fighting your pop-up ads with a new browser or a software add-on program.

When Formatting the Hard Drive is Your Only Recourse

Maintaining Your Privacy on the Internet Five Things you can do

Internet Anonymizers Why and When You Should Use Them

Lets Go Phishing Five Ways to Avoid Being Hooked by This Scam

The Basics of Internet Website Encryption

Internet Security
◦ Are You an Enabler? What Enabling Cookies
◦ Can the Spam-How to Filter Out All the Unnecessary Junk
◦ Channel the Cookie Monster in You - Computer Cookies Can Be Bad For Your Computer's Health
◦ Chat Room Challenge - Five Tips to Ensure Your Anonymity
◦ Computer Band-aid - How to Know if You Need to Download that Security Patch
◦ Computer Deep Freeze - Ten Tips to Keep your PC Up and Running
◦ Computer Junkyard - Does Spam Filtering Really Help?
◦ Dial-Up vs. Broadband - Which is the Safer Alternative?
◦ Doesn't Ad up - Three Things that Adware does to your Computer
◦ Don't Click No! How to Safely Close those Pop-up Windows
◦ Don't Get Hacked Off-How to Stop Computer Interlopers in their Tracks
◦ Exercise Parental Control - Five Tips to Keep Kids Safe on the Internet
◦ Exterminate those Bugs on your PC
◦ Getting Down With Downloads - How to Protect Your Computer
◦ Hijacked at Home - Five Steps to Protect Your Home PC
◦ Identity Theft via Internet Security Flaws
◦ Inoculate Yourself against Computer Viruses
◦ Internet Anonymizers - Why and When You Should Use Them
◦ Key Logging Capers Part Two - Three Reasons why it is a Problem
◦ Key Logging Capers - Three Reasons Why You Need It
◦ Let's Go Phishing! - Five Ways to Avoid Being Hooked by This Scam
◦ Maintaining Your Privacy on the Internet - Five Things you can do
◦ Malicious Instant Messages-Three Ways Instant Messaging Compromises Internet Security
◦ Malware is bad for your Computer
◦ Picking Blackberries - Why Mobile Technology Needs More Security
◦ Pound Those Pop-Ups
◦ Six Tips for Staying Healthy in a Computer Virus World
◦ Something Doesn't Register - Cleaning your Computer's Registry for Safety
◦ Spies Everywhere - What is Spyware and Why is it so Bad?
◦ Squash those Worms - Four Ways to Keep your PC Critter-Free
◦ That Wasn't Scripted! Why Scripted Viruses are Bad News
◦ The Basics of Internet Website Encryption
◦ The Cookie Monster - How Do Cookies Influence Internet Security?
◦ The Digital Certificate - What's It Mean and Why is It Important?
◦ Three Benefits to Using an Internet Remailer
◦ Three Reasons to Wipe Your Computer's Internet History Files Clean
◦ Three Ways that an Internet Firewall Can Be Compromised
◦ Three Ways to Identify a Virus Hoax
◦ Three Ways to make sure your Online Credit Card Transaction is Safe
◦ Toolbar Traps - What You Should Know BEFORE Downloading that "Helpful" Toolbar
◦ Top Five Reasons to Install a Firewall
◦ Top Five Spyware Threats to Internet Security
◦ Top Five Vulnerable Areas in Internet Security
◦ Top Five Worst Viruses and How to Protect Your Computer against Them
◦ Top Four Ways to Ensure a Secure Password
◦ Top Ten Tools to Boost your Internet Security
◦ What IP Addresses Mean in the Scheme of Internet Security
◦ When Formatting the Hard Drive is Your Only Recourse

Internet Privacy
◦ Remote Access Trojans Hijacking your Computer
◦ Precautions You Should Take When Installing WiFi in your Home
◦ Sold! How to Maintain your Privacy and Still Indulge in Online Auctions
◦ Social Networking Be Careful of What You Post!
◦ Sneaky Ways to Get Around those Internet Privacy Issues

Identity Theft
◦ Electronic Mail Identity Theft
◦ Facts on Identity Theft
◦ Fighting Identity Theft

ID Theft

Download Free eBook "The Dangers of Identity Theft and How to Protect Yourself!"