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Ask Toolbar Now Classified as Unwanted Software by Microsoft


bp9801

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At long last, the Ask Toolbar is on its way out, as Microsoft has recently started classifying older versions as a piece of unwanted software. Its malware programs have been automatically updated to detect and remove outdated Ask Toolbar installs, which should make many of us quite happy. It will certainly please security and IT professionals, as the Ask Toolbar has caused a host of problems for years. The toolbar tends to piggyback onto other installers and can be quite hard to spot how to not install it, with perhaps the most egregious offender being the Java installer. Unchecking the Ask Toolbar install has to be done during each and every Java update, and if you happen to just keep clicking next, odds are you'll have an unwanted addition to your browser. Now, all but the most recent edition of the Ask Toolbar is considered unwanted software, with the likes of Microsoft Security Essentials, Microsoft Security Scanner, and Windows Defender automatically removing the older Ask Toolbars automatically.

Considering Microsoft has recently started to get tougher on which apps with a search function get approved, the classification of older Ask Toolbars as unwanted software is just part of the process.

Source: Microsoft Malware Protection Center



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