Browser Toolbars – Assistants That Should Be Fired?
Nearly every time you start a new browsing session, you may see an ad for this toolbar or that one. In fact, you may even have one or two of those toolbars installed in your browser. Are they as helpful as they seem, though?
Types of Toolbars
The toolbar industry has exploded fairly recently, and there are all sorts of toolbars that you might see out there. There may even be a few that you need. Most search engines now have a toolbar that you can download and install. Most of them claim to give you easy access to the information you want why you’re browsing on the web. Lots of instant messenger programs have toolbars associated with them as well. They’ll help you out by giving you access to all of your contacts right away. Some websites even have their own toolbars you can download, design, or work with to help you out. For example, one site may offer you a shopping toolbar while another will give you access to a dictionary whenever you need it. The real problem with most toolbars, though, is telling the good from the bad.
Adware Toolbars
Some toolbars are bluntly unfriendly objects. Many will stealth install without your permission or knowledge. While they have a search bar and lots of little icons that look like fun, in most cases, they are simply another method of advertising to you. Not only do they send you targeting ads based on your typical browsing experience, they also upload information about you to a third party, putting both you and your machine at risk. They’ll clog your system, eat your resources, and employ some rather nasty tactics to get their ads and programs to you. Your best bet with these kinds of toolbars is to remove them immediately and avoid them if you can.
Adware Removal
Atdmt, About:Blank, Fastclick, Mirar, ShopAtHomeSelect, ResultDNS, Alureon, Trojan Horse, Tango Toolbar, Gala Search, OpenShopper, SDBot, CoolWebSearch, BitRoll, AdzGalore, Cursor Café, PlayMP3z, Zhelatin, Ameana, Aurora, TrustinBar
