I have a new desktop running Vista and IE7. When I try to access websites from my Favorites menu I briefly see my desired webpage popup, and then the page jumps to google searching for this: http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/ads?client=ca-pub-9743864042528336. What in the heck is going on? I subscribe to McAfee Internet Security and scanned for viruses and nothing. I also downloaded and ran Spybot Search & Destroy and found nothing. If it isn't obvious, I know very little about computers, so please go easy on me! Thanks in advance for your help.
A couple of things to note:
1: IE, any version to date, is unsafe to use for any extended period of time. Replace it with something like Firefox or Opera, and reserve IE ONLY for those rare pages that won't work with anything else.
2: McAfee is crap. I could explain why, but the long and short of it is that it's crap due to being a huge resource hog.
3: Your problem isn't virus or spyware related, though I can see why you might think that being an IE user. It's just an advertising script gone awry. If you used Firefox, with the NoScript plugin, you could just block all scripts from googlesyndication.com and never have to worry about it again. I don't know how you'd go about doing that with IE, because I try to avoid unsafe things as a general rule.
Thank you for your reply. If it's an advertising script error, does that mean that the problem lies with the website I'm trying to visit? I know that they run Google banner ads.
Most likely it's either the site or Google is having a few problems. However, you haven't done enough yet to completely rule out the possibility of malware. Spybot is a good first step, but you should also be running Adaware, AVG Anti-Spyware, and Windows Defender.
I Googled your situation and found someone on another forum with a similar problem (except his browser redirects to Google Images). A solution can be found here:
http://forums.microsoft.com/TechNet/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=3783530&SiteID=17
I have no idea whether this'll actually help but it wouldn't hurt to try.
BTW, I would strongly advise you to ignore what the other poster said regarding IE; he is obviously an anti-Microsoft person with an agenda. IE is safe for any extended length of time, provided you use precaution in your surfing habits. Just keep your anti-virus, firewall, and spyware/malware programs updated, be wary of suspicious emails, and don't visit sites that engage in unseemly activities or seem suspicious, such as warez, cracks, porn, hentai, gambling, illegal mp3 downloads, and too good to be true freebies, etc.
Not really, because I don't care that IE is made by Microsoft, that has nothing to do with it. I don't really know why you feel the need to label me an anti-Microsoft person with an agenda when all I did was point out a simple fact. If it were Mozilla Firefox that was the world record holder for most insecure program in the history of computing, then I'd be telling people to stay away from it.
I'm withholding judgment on IE8, since it's only in beta testing, but IE6 was a complete and total security disaster, you can't deny that. IE7 is an improvement, but it's still far too easy to pick up unwanted hitchhikers without meaning to. IE7 with Vista's "protected mode" is slightly better still, but things like Antivirus XP 2008 still walk right past it.
I'm not dealing in agendas here, I'm dealing in facts, and the facts are that IE is the primary target for malware attacks. If I had some anti-Microsoft agenda, I'd be pushing a specific alternative, not telling people to take their pick between options like Firefox, Flock, Seamonkey, Opera, and Safari. I prefer Firefox myself, but other people can use whatever they like best. If and when Microsoft manages to properly sandbox ActiveX to curtail the malware problem, I'll stop telling people to avoid using it. I don't see that day coming any time soon, but I I do acknowledge the possibility of IE8 finally bringing an end to a rather sorry chapter in the life of IE, however remote that possibility is.
In any case, do you not see the problem with what you're saying? You're already assuming that you're going to get malware with IE, otherwise why would you need a small fleet of programs that do nothing more than clean up the mess IE creates? Doesn't the better solution seem to be to avoid using the problematic program so you don't NEED all those programs? You can eliminate like 4-6 spyware removers from the list just by not using IE. I prefer to be proactive rather than reactive. Rather than cleaning up some giant mess, I just prefer to prevent the mess from occurring in the first place, but that's just me. Maybe you enjoy having your system trashed every now and again, or it makes you feel extra important somehow because you have 5-6 malware removers and you can impress the technically challenged by talking about it. Whatever the case, I would much rather spend time doing something enjoyable with my computer, not spending huge amounts of time on basic maintenance. So if that means "bashing" IE and being "an anti-Microsoft person with an agenda" then I guess I'm guilty as charged.
I also have the same problem as the poster in the MS forums. One of my Favorites redirects to the Google web search and another redirects to Google image search. I'll try their solution of removing all Google related software. I find it interesting that I, too, am using a new Gateway computer and am having the same problem.
Thanks for the help.
In that MS Technet post they don't really give a solution. They offer 6 things to try to narrow down the causes.
Your trying #1 might not be sufficient to solve it.
Kees
Perhaps this does have something to do with goggle software being pre-loaded on the machine and removing such will correct the issue.
If not...I see >pagead2.googlesyndication.com< being blocked by my Hosts file....just another method.
No problem! ![]()
Let us know if any of the solutions posted at the forums worked.
Sincerely,
hfguide
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