Home

October 7, 2013

Death By Toolbar

Sadly, most consumers have almost no idea where these changes came from, or how to get back to the search engines and toolbars they actually wanted.

Dave McClure

From the Bleeding Edge blog.

Accountants never use their business machines for personal business. They do not scan Facebook or Twitter. They do not play games. They do not go to porn sites.

Really.

But they do have friends and relatives who do, and who end up with toolbars, search engines and ads they don’t want and never requested.

Sadly, most consumers have almost no idea where these changes came from, or how to get back to the search engines and toolbars they actually wanted. But they know who to ask: their friendly local relative who happens to be a CPA or tax professional who knows computer stuff.

(Warning note: no good deed goes unpunished. If you help a relative with a computer problem and ANYTHING goes wrong with that machine within two years, it will be your fault. “It worked fine until _______ worked on it. They must have done something to it…”)

So here are the ways to fix the problem, courtesy of Dave’s Computer Tips (not me, BTW) at www.davescomputertips.com/avoiding-death-by-toolbar. Truth is, most of these aggravations are caused by users who simply do not pay attention to the installation defaults in their rush to get the “free” games, utilities or other software they want.

The worst offender is the updates to the Java video system. Java updates by default install the Ask.com search engine, which has nothing to do with the Java system but makes Oracle money for every computer it is installed on. Since it is virtually impossible to navigate the web without Java, most folks will sooner or later have their search engine hijacked by Ask.com.

So what do you do?

Or only use your work computers for work, and avoid all of these problems. But in case you do not, see the above.

Thanks for reading CPA Practice Advisor!

Subscribe for free to get personalized daily content, newsletters, continuing education, podcasts, whitepapers and more…

Need more information? Read the FAQs

Subscribe for free to get personalized daily content, newsletters, continuing education, podcasts, whitepapers and more...

Subscribe

Tags: Firm Management, Small Business, Technology

Leave a Reply

mcclure_10268610

Dave McClure

Contributing Writer/Columnist

Dave McClure is a U.S. Air Force veteran who flew a B-52 bomber during the Cold War, then became an Air Force Information Officer to hone his skills as a writer, editor and communications manager. He has since been a consultant in business and technology for more than three decades, with degrees in applied science and Organizational Development, with an MBA in Executive Management. He has consulted with companies ranging from Microsoft to General Electric, and has held positions as an accounting software marketing director, media editor, network engineer and professional beta tester for computer hardware and software . His career includes eight years with the NASA Space Shuttle program for BFGoodrich, more than 20 years writing for business and accounting publications, and his tenure as founder and president of the US Internet Industry Association. He is a global expert on IT, Internet and management issues, and currently serves as the co-chair of the International Internet Industry Alliance.    

View more articles from Dave McClure >

Recommended Articles

TikTok Goes Offline in U.S.

Small Business January 18, 2025 

TikTok Goes Offline in U.S.

Users in the U.S. have reported that the popular social media site TikTok has gone offline as of Saturday evening (Jan. 18, 2025). The app was at the center of a recent U.S. Supreme Court case that involved a law passed by Congress last year.

Isaac M. O'Bannon