-: If you're like most people,
at some point during your Internet surfing,
you've come across a window that has
a pop-up jump up in front of your browser.
Usually, this is something trying to grab your attention
like an ad or something else that they want you to click on.
Now, while this is annoying,
it can also be dangerous to your machine.
And we're going to talk about that in this lesson.
First, let me mention that you can block
a lot of these pop-ups.
For example, in Google Chrome, if you go under Settings,
there's a pop-up and redirect blocker that you can enable.
While most web-browsers have started having the ability
to block JavaScript created pop-ups,
advertisers are constantly finding new ways
of creating pop-ups using Flash and other technologies.
Also, if you block pop-up windows,
you may run into a problem because some legitimate websites
need it as a way for their website to function.
For example, I used to teach at a university.
Their payroll system used these pop-ups
and they had to be enabled.
If you didn't have them enabled,
you couldn't see you paycheck stub.
And that way, you couldn't see how much you were earning.
So, while you had to enable pop-ups for certain websites,
you probably shouldn't enable it for all websites.
Now, another concern with these pop-up ads
is that a lot of times, they're being done
through ad distribution networks.
And these are based on a pay-per-click model.
Malicious attackers can purchase pay-per-click
advertisements through these networks, as well.
And sometimes, they can embed either a link to their website
or a link to malicious code.
This can be a really big problem for us.
And so, a lot of people have gone through
and started blocking the ads completely.
You can do this using something like Adblock.
Adblock will go through the code as it's being delivered
from the website server and go into your web browser
and remove all of the advertisements.
Unfortunately, there's a problem with using Adblock too.
And that's that some websites you want to go to
may not serve up content if you're blocking advertisements.
A lot of websites are working under a free model
and their advertiser-supported.
So, if you're blocking the ads,
they're not making any money giving you content.
And so, a lot of them have coded it
so they won't deliver the content you're looking for
unless you turn off your ad blocker.
Another thing you can do is use a content filter.
Now, content filters will block external file types
like JavaScript, images, or even web pages
from loading in a browser.
You might be familiar with content filters
from your work environment.
If you go to school or you go to work,
they usually have content filters on their network.
This prevents you from accessing certain types of websites
that they deem inappropriate.
This might be things like gambling or pornography
or other types of websites that they feel are inappropriate
or a waste of time in the workplace.
These all get blocked by a content filter.
So, in summary, there's a lot of issues
when you start dealing with advertisements and pop-ups.
Unfortunately, there's no single solution to this problem
because if you block the ads or you block the pop-ups,
you may not be able to use the function
of the website you're desiring.
The best defense against unscrupulous advertisers though,
is to also ensure your browser and its extensions
are updated regularly.
This will be the best protection for you.
You should then also disable pop-ups when possible
and specifically allow only the sites you need
and if it doesn't affect your web browsing ability,
you might want to disable your advertisements as well
using an ad blocker.