Anti-ActiveX v0.0 :)

[Viking-X]

So I have been experimenting with my internet zone settings trying to find a level that doesn't exclude me from all the fun but still offers at least some protection.

This isn't easy - although Javascripting is used for nasty stuff it is also responsible for a lot of the interesting bits on the internet, so disable or prompt both have great disadvantages there I find.

However with regard to ActiveX content it seems that a fair bit of it is non-essential to the workings of the various webpages I use. So I was wondering if it might be possible to construct a resident application that let you approve/disapprove of ActiveX components like Teatimer does for registry changes?

Do ActiveX components have names or other means of identication? So you could say that this ActiveX which appearently does nothing useful I want to block but this other one which is the nifty lookup earlier subjects one like on these boards I want to allow to run. So you wouldn't have to answer yes or no to the prompts all the time?

Best regards, Lasse

[blues]

Do ActiveX components have names or other means of identication?

yes they do have an identification, if they didnt have that then spybots immunize couldnt block them. i think spybot denies activex that is in the immunize even if you want them, you dont even get a question about installing them. spybot blocks only bad activex.

i hope someone correct me if i am wrong.

[Viking-X]

Okay if Spybot can immunize against certain pieces of ActiveX then I suppose it must be possible to make a function also that allows the user to select some ActiveX to block which are not harmful but just not useful. Although to do it on the fly I suppose it's more in the range of Teatimers functions.

Or maybe that OpenSBI stuff could be used? Except how then would one know what to check for?

Best regards, Lasse

[blues]

you can try to set the internet zone to high and place sites you trust in the trusted zone, then you wont get any questions to install activex controls in the internet zone but only in the trusted zone, but that depends on what security settings you use in the trusted zone. it is a pain to do it this way but you get alot more protection when doing this than with the default security setting in internet explorer. just dont set the trusted zone security settings too low because i guess you will not have everything from trusted sites installed on your computer. you cant trust any site if you ask me.

[Viking-X]

Yeah the problem with that is that most of the sites I trust run useless ActiveX components anyway. Basically as soon as a site has say a google type ad banner, then some ActiveX will be run (or attempted to run) as this is displayed. Most likely that's the code that generates a tracking cookie I suspect.

So even though the site in itself is fine and might even have some bits of ActiveX that I actually do want to run, there might also be some that I would like to block. Hence the interest in an interactive ActiveX blocker with functionality like Teatimers registry 'surveillance' thing! :fear:

Added in edit: This would also mean that one could leave the internet explorer settings in the default modes and just rely on the resident protection software, which would make these things a good deal simpler to handle I feel.

Best regards, Lasse

[blues]

Basically as soon as a site has say a google type ad banner, then some ActiveX will be run (or attempted to run) as this is displayed. Most likely that's the code that generates a tracking cookie I suspect.

i dont think googles adservers runs activex, activex isnt needed to place cookies on the computer but i think javascript is used to place cookies on the computer sometimes, i also think that javascript can read the content of the cookies but only javascript from the site that placed the cookie should be able to do that unless a site runs an exploit, but i may be wrong.

you can not rely on any resident protection to protect you from everything, with the internet zone setting set to high you will get good protection and you can use resident protection software at the same time, that would be safest.

[Viking-X]

you can not rely on any resident protection to protect you from everything, with the internet zone setting set to high you will get good protection and you can use resident protection software at the same time, that would be safest.

Yes I am aware of that but I am not gunning for safest here but rather least cumbersome for user. With internet zone settings put on high a lot of websites will stop working properly even though they have no harmful content, so that's why I thought it would be nice to have a system where you could define your own safety as it where as you went along.

In regards to ActiveX content from what I've seen the last couple of days it's something like an 80/20 split of useless/usefull stuff, maybe even a 90/10. For javascripts it seems more like a 50/50 and honestly there is so much of it that even if you could identify them with a name or signature (which I believe isn't possible) then it would still be so often you'd have to decide whether to allow or not that it's not practical.

Just try putting active scripting on prompt and you'll see what I mean hehe! :rolleyes::laugh::p:

Best regards, Lasse

[blues]

Just try putting active scripting on prompt and you'll see what I mean hehe!

i have tried that and it is a pain, i have my zones to the default settings but i have the trusted zone to high because i dont use it, it is just in case if some malware places something in the trusted zone.

i was maybe wrong because once an activex control is installed it can probably place cookies on the computer when visiting some sites that uses the control as it is like running a program on the computer when the control is installed.

[blues]

actually it seems i didnt know what i was talking about yesterday, i was tired:cleaning:


i was maybe wrong because once an activex control is installed it can probably place cookies on the computer when visiting some sites that uses the control as it is like running a program on the computer when the control is installed.

[ME_2&]

.. you might want to check out a few Nirsoft utilities - http://nirsoft.net/utils/acm.html and http://nirsoft.net/utils/axhelper.html - very hands-on ;)

[blues]

i am sure the programs ME_2& linked to are usefull to you Viking-X:)