was my browser hijacked?

[bill30955]

hello forum: I had AOL free trial-offered to upgrade me to IE 6.0-I downloaded it thru AOL-now AOL logo is everywhere when I use IE on my Netzero ISP-can I get back to using IE without all the AOL trimmings?-is it slowing me down thru AOL? I am new to this and will have to be very careful-can anyone help? Thank you

[merlin]

try this bill>http://www.wilderssecurity.net/bhblaster.html

[bill30955]

Merlin: Thanks for the reply. I tried the link but got a dead end. Also went to MSN and downloaded IE 6.0 again. AOL still appears on IE browser. If I cancel AOL can I uninstall IE 6.0 and then reload it from a disk? I am afraid that AOL will still control my browser when I use my Net Zero ISP! I feel trapped here since I need IE for my Net Zero Account. Thanks Again

[dl65]

Hi Bill ,
Unfortunately AOL is bad for that.....I had a situation about a yer or so ago ,where I received a cd from our bank .....like a fool I dropped it in the cd tray and carried on working ......It took over my puter......changed everything.......I spent hours trying to purge it. It was all through the registry , changed my dial up accounts , in short took over. I finally got fed up and reformatted my machine......that fixed it .......I steer clear of AOL.....Thats why there is an ongoing class action suit against them at the present ( I believe) If your patient , you may be able to manually purge it but the quickest and easiest would be to reformat.
I feel sorry for you.......been there done that

dl65  

[bill30955]

Hello dl65: Thanks for your reply. I guess I'm stuck with it unless AOL can remove it. Whatever, I got the machine for peanuts and put in extended memory(163mb)for $25.00 got NetZero for $10/month and AOL so far has given me 4 months of 7.0 for nothing.They also offered me full service for $17.00/mo. after the trial period. So I guess I shouldn't complain too much. It's just the idea of the intrusion. And no disclosure up front. Live and learn. Also can I switch to another browser for my NetZero or is IE the only browser that they use?   Thanks Again!

[natesneat2000]

You could likely use any broser. Mozilla Firefox is a great, free, open-source browser with lots of nice featutres like tabbed browsing (I use and love it):
http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/
Let us know if you like it! Sorry about AOL... agreed, steer clear.

[bill30955]

Nate: Thanks for your suggestion. Next month when I must decide to keep or cancel AOL I will be looking at alternatives. I may just stay with Netzero and change browsers.

[merlin]

aol remove instructions>http://support.imaginenet.net/general/general_aol.htm  and to make sure of it download system mechanic from www.iolo.com

[bill30955]

Merlin: Thanks again. I put AOL uninstall link in Favorites for when the day comes. Also took Nate's advice and loaded Mozilla Firefox(~6.2mbs). Seems to work fine
except no Auto-Hide on Menu Bar. I like that feature.

Nate: Thanks again. I'll probably keep Firefox.