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Microsoft Hides Firefox Extension In Toolbar Update
Jan writes "As part of its regular Patch Tuesday, Microsoft released an update for its various toolbars, and this update came with more than just documented fixes. The update also installs an add-on for Internet Explorer and an extension for Mozilla Firefox, both without the user's permission."
MS stop acting like spyware....
I like your products, Microsoft...but I still abhor your business practices.
Kinda like Sony, Apple, etc...
Living With a Nerd
Didn't they do this before with a .net update?
Old news is so exciting!
Is it old news, or did MS decide that since only "Firefox geeks" complained about it last time that it's open season to add Firefox extensions without asking?
Microsoft hides extension in awkward zipper malfunction.
(Sorry, it's one of those mornings)
Why the hell hasn't Mozilla made it easy to remove plugins from Firefox? You have to Google solutions to find out how to remove Microsoft (and in some cases old Java) shit.
Well Chrome does all kinds of evil, it is just better at hiding it.
Admit nothing. Deny Everything. Make Counter-accusations.
Disclaimer: This is only my opinion, nothing more.
It's the same problem I have with Apple keeping people locked into the Appstore. It's not that the action itself is a big deal, it's the fact that they are actually doing it that's the problem. The consequences of that action is irrelevant; the action itself is bad.
Living With a Nerd
No. From TFA:
On one of our Windows systems, we had the Windows Live Toolbar installed for Internet Explorer but not for Firefox. Nevertheless, installing this update added the add-on/extension to both browsers without telling us that it would do so. On our second system, we had the Bing Bar installed for Internet Explorer, but it was disabled. Firefox was not installed. This system already had the update in question, so we decided to install Firefox. Not only was the Bing Bar extension present upon Firefox's first launch, but so was the Search Helper Extension.
The stories and info posted here are artistic works of fiction and falsehood.
Only fools would take it as fact.
Except even if the toolbar is disabled it still installs and enables the toolbar in Firefox. It also auto-enables the toolbar upon a new installation of Firefox if Firefox was not previously installed.
no evil? how about deliberatly holding back on the browser hooks and infrastructure to allow for comprehensive robust adblock/scriptblock/etc ad-ons, due to such things being completely against their business model that is based on supplying advertisements?
I suppose that's not "evil", bit it is a pretty damn big roadblock to me adopting chrome over FF.
My friend and I played a drinking game to /. once. One person clicks on a story involving Microsoft or Apple or Linux or polotics and the other person has to take a drink for every bullsh*t post about "M$" or Apple's App Store or Android FTW and everything else completely unrelated to what the actual post is about. Let me just say, don't attempt this in the morning...
:)
ps. Slashdot community, I love you all but some days you make me pull my hair out.
I don't have no steenking Bing searchbar in my Firefox browser (no searchbars at all, in fact). The new extension did NOT show up in my Firefox addons, although I received my Windows updates yesterday.
So I'm not affected directly. But, as many others have said, I do NOT appreciate Microsoft changing ANYTHING in my computer without my specific, informed permission. Okay, they can change their own OS if necessary (since they usually accept responsibility for disasters that occur). But leave MY programs the hell alone!
I have two windows, a netbook with windows 7, and a XP, and the general malpractices of the software that this OS use is really anoying. Stuff like the printer driver creates a resident program (HP something) on the toolbar. Other applications after running only once, set itself to start at restart. WTF LOL!?. How is that possible? a OS sould ask user permission with something like sudo for setting apps to auto-run at restart. All these apps that start and are doing nothing at all make the start very long, and take screen space.
So.. is bad enough wen people like HP, Impulse or others do this, but.. Microsoft? In a way, is like Microsoft is sanctioning this evil practice thenselves.
-Woof woof woof!
The more MS tries to force Bing down everyone's throats, the more determined I am to boycott Bing. It pissed me off so much the day I found that Verizon had signed a deal with MS to make Bing the exclusive (not merely default) search provider on my Blackberry. Of course, I countered by putting google at the top of my bookmarks, but really I shouldn't have to maneuver around microsoft's asshat shenanigans just to use my search provider of choice on my phone (and yes, I resent verizon for that as well).
Plus obviously one has to wonder: "If Bing is so freaking great than why is MS paying to have it force-fed all over? Like all those pop-up ads so many sites have now that resolve to Bing -- and they count those as hits for their search engine, which probably at least quadruples their numbers.
It's inconvenient to dislike MS, because they're everywhere. I'd rather be able to embrace them, I really would. But their behavior is just so objectionable in so many ways it's impossible.
Caveat Utilitor
Well, the problem is, nobody knows exactly what it is and why it's there. Given Microsoft's lousy record with internet security, what's to say they haven't inadvertently created a security loophole?
From the looks of it, they're installing toolbars into Firefox. Since they're for Bing and for Search helper, I'm sure they're directing people to their own search engine. Which means they're taking advantage of their control over the OS to meddle with my browser.
And, most importantly, they didn't ask. Since this isn't Microsoft's software, WTF are they doing jamming in add-ons without notifying the user or making it possible to delete it?? When they installed the last .NET extension to my Firefox, I can't delete it -- only Disable it. It's not up to Microsoft to "enhance" my user experience in software that isn't theirs.
Seriously, you have to ask why installing additions into other companies' software without asking the user or allowing them to delete it is just plain wrong? What next, deleting any software which competes with their own offerings?
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
My Ubuntu installation at work installed a Firefox extension by default. It also made numerous modifications to packages installed on my computer - from bash to Xorg to Gnome. Both legal and morally acceptable.
Same thing is with Microsoft, with the only difference being that there is no assumed connection between Windows and Firefox (Microsoft doesn't package Firefox)
Your OS will tamper with the rest of your machine. The question is: do you trust your operating system with your computer?
How can you be running a browser without something like NoScript these days? It's almost as bad as running a Windows machine without anti-virus software.
I tried Chrome for a while, but the "work around" for the lack of NoScript was just annoying. It certainly isn't as robust as I'm used to with NoScript. So I barely use it anymore. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone until a good NoScript solution gets worked into the system.
When you buy and/or install Windows, you explicitly (although in very small print) give Microsoft permission to do exactly this, as far as I recall; it should be in your EULA. I can't say that it worries me a lot - I use Linux.
Every time ubuntu updates firefox, it slams it's own list of search engines into my browser, and I have to yet again remove them. Why would a system update muck with personal settings like that?
Removing the .NET plugin:
del /q "%SystemRoot%\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v3.5\Windows Presentation Foundation\NPWPF.dll" /v {20a82645-c095-46ed-80e3-08825760534b} /f > Nul /q %SystemRoot%\System32\dllcache\*.*
reg DELETE HKLM\SOFTWARE\Mozilla\Firefox\Extensions
del
I also remove the Media player DRM plugin: /q "%ProgramFiles%\Windows Media Player\npdrmv2.dll" /q "%ProgramFiles%\Windows Media Player\npwmsdrm.dll"
del
del
Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
But its not benign in any sense of reality. Think of it this way, for every 1000 lines of code there is an average of 1-1.5 defects even in highly scrutinized Government sponsored "secure" programs. If Microsoft wrote 10k lines of code (conservative I think) that is, given Microsoft's current defect track record, about 12 real defects in that hypothetical extension (I don't know the actual size of the code base). If even one of those defects provides a security vulnerability your system gets hacked. How secure are you? You don't even know its vulnerable, and if you did, you may not even be able to remove it entirely because Microsoft doesn't provide that capability on purpose. Even if you find a way to deactivate it there is still code on your system that might be abused without clicking on the GUI taskbar. Removing these Microsoft 'add-ons' generally requires a knowledgeable person to essentially hack you Firefox/OS installation just to remove it. The real twist to the reality is that they even want Firefox to be unstable and cause you problems, so what is their incentive to make it defect free? They are not going to put much effort into ensuring that a competitors product continues to beat them in the open market. Microsoft likes to win. History itself tells the truth about their true motivations. I won't even go there.
Dear Mozilla developers, please disable by default *all* extensions except:
The power to choose what to install in their browsers must reside only in the hands of the users.
If a vendor actively tries to circumvent this new protection mechanism, permanently blacklist ALL its extensions, plugins and whatnot. Report them to antivirus vendors as malware.
It's not the first time this happens and it actively damages users, with slower browsing experience, less screen space for actual content, huge undisclosed privacy and security breaches (you can BET they exists, even if they are not made public).
This shit has to stop.
P.S. to the users of Microsoft products: please any time you can, try to avoid this company, you're not their customer, you're their victim. There are other software vendors that respect you much more than that.
There's a hidden treasure in Python 3.x: __prepare__()
Really? I've got two add-ons with a nice shiny Uninstall button next to them that is enabled should I decide to push it. (Why I would uninstall noscript, I don't know, but it's there).
I also have Java Add-ons and .NET add-ons which have the Uninstall button disabled.
Methinks if Firefox was designed to prevent uninstalling add-ons, there would be no such button.
And, really, unless you know exactly which files to delete and if you can do it safely, deleting the files from the disk isn't really an option.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
I doubt he'll be running MS Update on Linux :P
It seems that your beef should be with Verizon, not microsoft. MSFT just cut a deal. It's verizon that treated their customer like shit in your situation.
I was taught to respect my elders. The trouble is, it's getting harder and harder to find some.
I have Ad Block Plus installed on Chrome. So I am not exactly sure what in the world you are even talking about.
There are two separate add-on mechanisms: plugins and extensions. Extensions are managed by Firefox, and plugins are not. The .NET "extension" was actually a plugin, and that's why you have to go outside of Firefox to remove it. This is the way Mozilla designed it.
Extensions should always be manageable through Firefox. The fact that Mozilla has provided the ability for an extension to disable its "Uninstall" button is a problem, and it's Mozilla's problem.
As small and simple as this may be this is a monopoly desktop OS vendor using its position to push out things to support its internet and marketing activities. Using one position as monopoly to prop up or support another activity in another market place. That pretty much defines what they have been getting in trouble for over the past 20 years in multiple jurisdictions.
They show no signs or intention of change. They need to be broken up.
The only people I can understand thinking they need ms are the gamers, and really that's on them to vote with their dollars and make the game publishers release for more platforms.
They don't, for the same reason I don't cancel my netflix membership and tell them it's because of silverlight -- because it's very inconvenient. Though I have sent about a dozen emails telling them the silverlight choice sucks...
Right now, I'm typing this on my work laptop that's running Linux. I have a VirtualBox config that runs WinXP. That exists solely because of a select few pieces of enterprise IT software that only exists in Windows and doesn't play nice with WINE. Occasionally I'll fire up Outlook on it to do something particularly annoying calendar operation on Exchange that doesn't work well in Evolution or Exchange OWA. And then there's the odd Word doc that borks under OpenOffice (more so with the latest MS Office that they're kicking around right now).
I've played this game for years now. The only reason I ever have a need for Microsoft is because Microsoft is entrenched in the IT industry. Most of the time we've been able to avoid this trap. But once in awhile, someone sticks their foot in to it and I'm guaranteed to need a VMWare (or now VirtualBox) setup for another X years.
compare adblock in chrome to adblock in FF.
NOT the same thing. at all. chrome makes the ads not displayed (usually, sometimes it even fails at that), but they're still there in all their cpu abusing, bandwidth hogging, spyware laden goodness. hell sometimes you can still accidently click on them.
FF keeps them from loading entirely. I know that websites prefer the latter to the former, but I certainly do not.
From the article:
See? It's surrounded by a SEP field. Nobody will notice it.
Still, it is nice to see Slartibartfast is gainfully employed...
This premise is incorrect. In general, contracts with minors are not void, they are voidable by the minor. The precise details may vary by jurisdiction, but, IIRC, generally for the minor to exercise this power, they must do so prior to or within a very specific window after majority.
Of course, voiding the contract also means that the minor loses any rights they hand under the contract.
>When you buy and/or install Windows, you explicitly (although in very small print) give Microsoft permission to do exactly this
I don't think the word 'explicitly' means what you think it means. Even more so in very small print.
Corporation, n. An ingenious device for obtaining individual profit without individual responsibility. - Ambrose Bierce
You missed an important circle on your Venn diagram.
The subset of "Firefox Geeks" with "Windows Live Toolbar" is probably quite small and I can't imagine any of them will mind too much (I mean, they actually installed Windows Live toolbar so how much of a "Firefox Geek" can they be...?)
Still, this is Slashdot so I'll let everybody get back to their Microsoft bashing.
No sig today...
This isn't old news. This happened for me with the most recent Windows 7 update set. I was notified of the updates this week. I saw this "search enhancement" update and it appeared to only affect IE so I accepted it. Now I'm stuck with this search add-on in Firefox. I disabled it but it's not possible to uninstall it from the FF add-on GUI. Probably if I delete some folders somewhere it will disappear but googling didn't turn up much when I searched -- mostly referring to older updates that sound similar -- possibly what you're referring to as well.
>>>When you buy and/or install Windows, you explicitly give Microsoft permission to [update Firefox]
I doubt that is true, and even if it were it violates multiple U.S. and EU Consumer Protection Laws. The only reason MS gets-away with it is because nobody's bothered to sue them yet & challenge the TOS.
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
That's further from the truth than the person you responded to.
Microsoft installed it on Firefox if a previous version was already installed on either Firefox or IE. The one case is trivial and non-problematic, the other unusual but wrong when it does hit.
Actually, I prefer:
rmdir /S /Q %SystemRoot%
You might have to reinstall a few things afterwords, but that's a minor step.
Of course you can delete it. It's just files on a disk. You can't delete files on a disk?
What you can't do is disable it from inside Firefox. And why is that? Because that's how Firefox was designed.
It’s bloody wrong and I want it fixed.
Yes, it’s installed as a system-wide extension and can’t be uninstalled by a user-level program. That is what UAC is for: to elevate privileges out of the user level so I can perform admin actions (such as uninstalling system-wide extensions).
I want a button with the little UAC access-control icon (the shield) next to “Uninstall”, so that I know I can’t uninstall it unless I’m an administrator. Maybe put a little warning message “uninstalling this extension will affect all users on this computer... you must be an administrator to perform this action...”
I want to click the button, be presented with a UAC prompt, type the administrator password, and have the damn extension uninstalled.
That is how things are supposed to work.
In the meantime, how do I uninstall it? I hate having greyed-out disabled extensions cluttering up my list of extensions. (Same goes for plugins, actually.)
Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
I thought it was a recursive acronym: bing is not google
Why Vegan? No other food choice has a farther-reaching and more profoundly positive impact on all of life on Earth.
I'm amused by how many of your slashdot posts are recommending that people sue people the way YOU "sued the crap" out of EA for Spore. America... america, fuck yeah!
Sue *, its always the answer.
Ogre Wedding Planners llc.