Questions tagged [adware]
110 questions
88
votes
9 answers
Downloading software without bloatware
From time to time, I find myself needing a piece of software to perform a specific task. Download.com (CNET) used to be a good site. But now, I find that they bundle a lot of "evilware", i.e. bloatware/adware (spyware?). Despite my best efforts to…
Ola Eldøy
- 1,247
19
votes
11 answers
What are some things to avoid if you want to keep your computer adware/spyware free?
I recently reinstalled the OS (Windows XP Home) on a friend's heavily spyware/adware infected machine. It appears as though his kids (7 and 11 years I believe) were visiting sites that offered downloads for search bars, screensavers, and "cute"…
John Rasch
- 306
18
votes
2 answers
What exactly is Java's new helper tool? Updating from Java 8 update 60 to Java update 71 on a Mac
I've looked around online and can't seem to find that much information of what Java's new helper tool is. I've found another thread here on SE but it doesn't explain that much. Is it something that offers bloatware and tries to get you to download…
user3635123
- 183
15
votes
1 answer
Remove Github Actions from Visual Studio Solution Explorer
With the latest update of Visual Studio 2022 (version 17.7.0 Preview 4.0), I now have an seemingly non-removable node in Solution Explorer with the Github logo labeled 'Github Actions'.
It's not the end of the world, but it becomes one more thing…
dgo
- 922
13
votes
1 answer
uTorrent - adware / malware on download and install - Mac OSX Yosemite
I recently downloaded uTorrent (for the more ethically concerned: to get a wikipedia data dump as the official download server kept terminating my download, not to rip off copyright holders...), and as soon as the installation had finished my…
Jake_Howard
- 233
10
votes
1 answer
Why does my browser try to open ads from fwdsnp.com?
When I browse to some retail websites, my browser briefly directs to fwdsnp.com. From there it tries to open a popup and then forwards to the site that I actually want. I first noticed this with dell.com. I initially thought it was adware I had…
Wallace
- 333
9
votes
1 answer
How to permanently disable Windows 11 upgrade nag screen?
I occasionally get full screen ads about my computer being eligible for a Windows 11 upgrade, which looks something like this
Hardwarewise the computer probably is capable of running Windows 11. Apparently this ad cannot be disabled by a single…
user13267
- 1,873
5
votes
4 answers
"Ads not by this site" displayed by ads injected into certain web pages
I'm having ads injected into random pages in Firefox, such as Youtube, Wikipedia and Facebook. I know Wikipedia doesn't serve ads, so this must be some kind of adware. Below the ad appears the text "Ads not by this site." Does anyone know exactly…
afkbowflexin
- 153
4
votes
4 answers
Removing invisible extension “happysale” in google chrome
The extension "happysale" is showing ads by "gifton" in Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox, and I seem to be unable to remove it.
When I go to extensions in Chrome I can't see it, but when i go to the task manager in Chrome it's there, tagged as…
4
votes
1 answer
Hosts file "type"
I am using Windows Vista. The "type" column next to my hosts file in windows explorer says "sAveRabox." This appears to be the name of adware that I recently removed. How can I restore the "type" column to the default name in windows?
xaav
- 925
4
votes
7 answers
Is Foxit reader adware?
I have heard some people say that Foxit Reader is adware. What exactly does it try to do and how much can I disable?
Casebash
- 7,727
4
votes
2 answers
How do I tell which application has opened a link in my browser?
I am trying to fix a problem with a computer running Windows XP on which, at random points in time, an advertising web page will open up in the default browser.
I should point out that I've already tried SpyBot Search & Destroy which didn't solve…
drfrogsplat
- 386
4
votes
7 answers
I have some sort of adware that isn't being detected by anything. What should I do?
This started happening a couple of days ago. It's a small and simple form of adware, but it's incredibly annoying. It linkjacks your results on google. For example, if I search for "jobs", the top result is Monster. But if I click it, I get sent to…
ryeguy
- 741
4
votes
5 answers
How to rid my computer of spyware and adware
I have a bit of a spyware problem.
I tried using How to Clean up a Windows Spyware Infestation to help get rid of the spyware/adware on my computer. I have autoruns and process explorer and got rid of the files that did not have a publisher or a…
Joe Costello
3
votes
2 answers
Suddenly getting "ads by currency"
Running Windows 7 and Chrome browser.
So I've suddenly been getting these ads (only noticed them today and I use the computer often enough to have noticed them before). I found a "Chrome Remote Desktop Host" program with an install date of…
user3475234
- 207