Question about Windows and Microsoft Explorer.

[Kissfan79]

Hey guys....just a quick question. At some point today while surfing the net, I noticed that certain words are now underlined and there is a link (if you move your cursor over it) to a search function..or other sites that have information about that topic. They are words ike car, shopping, insurance, etc. Until today, system never did that. Does anyone know off hand if this is an option I somehow enabled or if it is some new software I somehow picked up? More importantly, does anyone know how to disable or remove it? I am running Windows 2000 Pro with Exlporer 6.0. I can't for the life of me figure out how this started happening....it's kinda' annoying to see those words underlined.Jim

[drunkenmaxx]

i have internet explorer for mac and i get that on some sites. i am not sure, but i would bet that it is part of the page you are on.

[Kissfan79]

The thing is.....it never did up until today. For instance.....I have never seen it here at this site but even in this very topic, the words "car" and "insurance" are underlined in green and can be clicked on. Jim

[ragingfish]

Sounds like you might've picked some some unwanted wares....Go through Add/Remove programs, look to see if there's anything new or that you don't recognize...remove anything that doesn't belong. If you're unsure, make a list of them here and we'll see if we can help you out...

[Kissfan79]

I did do that and removed some stuff.... I will make a complete list and post it here. I can't see anything on there that is unusual though.Jim

[ColonelPanic]

Yep, you've got some kind of "targeted marketing" spyware that automagically infected your box. Yet another way for someone to manipulate a Windows box for a quick buck.Some sites highlight certain terms - I can think of reviews on cartalk.cars.com for example. I've seen text there highlighted in Opera on Linux which I use, and I know that there's not a chance I have any spyware. So, you could highlight sections of your site in the HTML code, to emphasize something for your viewers. But, since you're also getting links, I don't think that is the case.I think a malicious app is running in the background, picking out certain strings of text in the document, and manipulating your browser to add the highlighting and links.You may want to go out and get something like Spybot Search and Destroy. http://www.safer-networking.org/ It is available free of charge, and does a pretty decent job at removing that garbage. Alternatively, there are many others, such as Adaware, etc. that you could try. Let us know if you need any help getting this stuff off your box!

[Kissfan79]

ColonelPanic.......thanks for the recommendation of Spybot. I downloaded it and ran it. It found a kajillion issues and fixed most of them. Now....the green lines under stuff like "car" and "insurance" are gone.Thanks again, Jim

[ragingfish]

Of COURSE! I forgot about them spyware scanners.AdAware is another good one...

[ColonelPanic]

Quote, originally posted by Kissfan79 »ColonelPanic.......thanks for the recommendation of Spybot. I downloaded it and ran it. It found a kajillion issues and fixed most of them. Now....the green lines under stuff like "car" and "insurance" are gone.Thanks again, JimNo prob, Jim! Amazing to see what gets installed when you're not looking!