1 00:00:00,600 --> 00:00:01,970 If you're like most people, 2 00:00:01,970 --> 00:00:04,250 at some point during your Internet surfing, 3 00:00:04,250 --> 00:00:05,790 you've come across a window that has 4 00:00:05,790 --> 00:00:08,180 a pop-up jump up in front of your browser. 5 00:00:08,180 --> 00:00:10,660 Usually, this is something trying to grab your attention 6 00:00:10,660 --> 00:00:13,270 like an ad or something else that they want you to click on. 7 00:00:13,270 --> 00:00:14,970 Now, while this is annoying, 8 00:00:14,970 --> 00:00:17,060 it can also be dangerous to your machine. 9 00:00:17,060 --> 00:00:19,390 And we're going to talk about that in this lesson. 10 00:00:19,390 --> 00:00:21,450 First, let me mention that you can block 11 00:00:21,450 --> 00:00:23,180 a lot of these pop-ups. 12 00:00:23,180 --> 00:00:26,200 For example, in Google Chrome, if you go under Settings, 13 00:00:26,200 --> 00:00:29,220 there's a pop-up and redirect blocker that you can enable. 14 00:00:29,220 --> 00:00:31,490 While most web-browsers have started having the ability 15 00:00:31,490 --> 00:00:33,860 to block JavaScript created pop-ups, 16 00:00:33,860 --> 00:00:36,500 advertisers are constantly finding new ways 17 00:00:36,500 --> 00:00:40,180 of creating pop-ups using Flash and other technologies. 18 00:00:40,180 --> 00:00:42,400 Also, if you block pop-up windows, 19 00:00:42,400 --> 00:00:45,120 you may run into a problem because some legitimate websites 20 00:00:45,120 --> 00:00:47,990 need it as a way for their website to function. 21 00:00:47,990 --> 00:00:50,670 For example, I used to teach at a university. 22 00:00:50,670 --> 00:00:53,270 Their payroll system used these pop-ups 23 00:00:53,270 --> 00:00:54,720 and they had to be enabled. 24 00:00:54,720 --> 00:00:55,990 If you didn't have them enabled, 25 00:00:55,990 --> 00:00:57,670 you couldn't see you paycheck stub. 26 00:00:57,670 --> 00:00:59,710 And that way, you couldn't see how much you were earning. 27 00:00:59,710 --> 00:01:02,840 So, while you had to enable pop-ups for certain websites, 28 00:01:02,840 --> 00:01:05,615 you probably shouldn't enable it for all websites. 29 00:01:05,615 --> 00:01:08,120 Now, another concern with these pop-up ads 30 00:01:08,120 --> 00:01:10,060 is that a lot of times, they're being done 31 00:01:10,060 --> 00:01:11,830 through ad distribution networks. 32 00:01:11,830 --> 00:01:14,380 And these are based on a pay-per-click model. 33 00:01:14,380 --> 00:01:16,540 Malicious attackers can purchase pay-per-click 34 00:01:16,540 --> 00:01:18,620 advertisements through these networks, as well. 35 00:01:18,620 --> 00:01:21,980 And sometimes, they can embed either a link to their website 36 00:01:21,980 --> 00:01:23,840 or a link to malicious code. 37 00:01:23,840 --> 00:01:25,830 This can be a really big problem for us. 38 00:01:25,830 --> 00:01:27,950 And so, a lot of people have gone through 39 00:01:27,950 --> 00:01:30,310 and started blocking the ads completely. 40 00:01:30,310 --> 00:01:32,627 You can do this using something like Adblock. 41 00:01:32,627 --> 00:01:35,670 Adblock will go through the code as it's being delivered 42 00:01:35,670 --> 00:01:38,510 from the website server and go into your web browser 43 00:01:38,510 --> 00:01:40,930 and remove all of the advertisements. 44 00:01:40,930 --> 00:01:43,730 Unfortunately, there's a problem with using Adblock too. 45 00:01:43,730 --> 00:01:46,180 And that's that some websites you want to go to 46 00:01:46,180 --> 00:01:49,730 may not serve up content if you're blocking advertisements. 47 00:01:49,730 --> 00:01:52,290 A lot of websites are working under a free model 48 00:01:52,290 --> 00:01:54,030 and their advertiser-supported. 49 00:01:54,030 --> 00:01:55,330 So, if you're blocking the ads, 50 00:01:55,330 --> 00:01:57,510 they're not making any money giving you content. 51 00:01:57,510 --> 00:01:59,460 And so, a lot of them have coded it 52 00:01:59,460 --> 00:02:01,770 so they won't deliver the content you're looking for 53 00:02:01,770 --> 00:02:03,960 unless you turn off your ad blocker. 54 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:06,690 Another thing you can do is use a content filter. 55 00:02:06,690 --> 00:02:09,430 Now, content filters will block external file types 56 00:02:09,430 --> 00:02:12,210 like JavaScript, images, or even web pages 57 00:02:12,210 --> 00:02:13,800 from loading in a browser. 58 00:02:13,800 --> 00:02:15,430 You might be familiar with content filters 59 00:02:15,430 --> 00:02:16,780 from your work environment. 60 00:02:16,780 --> 00:02:18,540 If you go to school or you go to work, 61 00:02:18,540 --> 00:02:21,090 they usually have content filters on their network. 62 00:02:21,090 --> 00:02:23,620 This prevents you from accessing certain types of websites 63 00:02:23,620 --> 00:02:25,280 that they deem inappropriate. 64 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:27,870 This might be things like gambling or pornography 65 00:02:27,870 --> 00:02:30,470 or other types of websites that they feel are inappropriate 66 00:02:30,470 --> 00:02:32,740 or a waste of time in the workplace. 67 00:02:32,740 --> 00:02:35,310 These all get blocked by a content filter. 68 00:02:35,310 --> 00:02:37,250 So, in summary, there's a lot of issues 69 00:02:37,250 --> 00:02:39,940 when you start dealing with advertisements and pop-ups. 70 00:02:39,940 --> 00:02:42,840 Unfortunately, there's no single solution to this problem 71 00:02:42,840 --> 00:02:45,590 because if you block the ads or you block the pop-ups, 72 00:02:45,590 --> 00:02:47,180 you may not be able to use the function 73 00:02:47,180 --> 00:02:48,727 of the website you're desiring. 74 00:02:48,727 --> 00:02:52,170 The best defense against unscrupulous advertisers though, 75 00:02:52,170 --> 00:02:54,630 is to also ensure your browser and its extensions 76 00:02:54,630 --> 00:02:56,220 are updated regularly. 77 00:02:56,220 --> 00:02:58,390 This will be the best protection for you. 78 00:02:58,390 --> 00:03:01,200 You should then also disable pop-ups when possible 79 00:03:01,200 --> 00:03:03,680 and specifically allow only the sites you need 80 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:05,960 and if it doesn't affect your web browsing ability, 81 00:03:05,960 --> 00:03:08,250 you might want to disable your advertisements as well 82 00:03:08,250 --> 00:03:09,687 using an ad blocker.