Well to put it bluntly, much of what you may see on our site in the way of ads, is not there with our knowledge or permission. Several spyware/adware companies have developed a technology whereby they can (with or without your permission) install a script onto your computer that actually introduces new banner ads that otherwise would not be there. Its harmless to your and your files, but it can drive you insane with popup's and makes us look bad in the process, by serving up ads we do not support.

It happens while you surf the web, and many times you can't even know its being installed. Its called Spyware, or Adware. Most of the time, with a few exceptions, it does not even appear in your "Add / Remove Programs" screen. A telltale sign that you've got one on your computer is if you get popup ads even while you're not browsing the internet. If this is happening, you've got one, and its no easy task to get rid of it.

Dishonesty going Mainstream?

Unfortunately many legitimate companies like AOL and their Instant Messaging program now give the user the option of installing "neat little helper programs" that provide a fairly useless service and simultaneously install adware right onto your computer. Other programs such as Kazaa include it as part of the installation process as well. PLEASE be aware of what you're agreeing to when you install programs these days. Its unfortunate that greed and money continue to dominate over ethics and integrity.

We strongly suggest you read this article on Adware and Spyware: http://cexx.org/problem.htm

How it works

Several companies sign up with specific Adware organizations and have their banner or advertisement included. When you go to a web site with specific keywords on it, such as "hair transplant", if that script on your computer is run by an Adware company that has a sponsor for that keyword, you will see that sponsor's ad pop up in front of you. This has resulted in several undesirable ads for Propecia, Hair Transplant Companies, and every other possible organization you can imagine - appearing right here on our site, without our knowledge.

These companies have gotten so successful at their technology that they no longer solely run popup ads. They've managed to figure out how to actually change our existing Propecia banner into a completely different banner, right on the page itself. Many times you will see ads for everything from Toothpaste to Condoms, and completely without our knowledge or permission. They have further figured out how to actually change text on the page into a text link that is underlined, and links you off our site to one of their sponsor's web sites.

As time goes by, this stealing of advertising space will likely become illegal, but due to the nature of it, very few people even realize its happening, and just assume that the web site they're on is feeding them the ads. Not the case with HairlossTalk. We currently have only one paid advertiser on our site, and that is Merck Pharmaceuticals. If you see an ad for Bosley Medical, or any online pharmacy selling Propecia - this is not our ad and we do not support nor condone its appearance on our site.

So how do I get rid of it?

Glad you asked. There are several adware sniffing programs out there that work well, but its still not as cut and dry as "find and delete". Some re institute themselves when you reboot your computer. They're very intelligent scripts. Although they are relatively harmless to your computer and your personal files on it, they can drive you insane with unwanted ads.

There is one program we recommend highly, called AdAware. You can download it from Download.com, or by going to this link directly:

http://download.com.com/Ad-aware/3000-8022-10214379.html?tag=lst-0-1

You will want to run the detailed scan, not just the general scan, and unfortunately, you will need to quarantine, delete, reboot, and then run it again, over, and over until it no longer detects any adware on your computer.

Many of our users have been asking why we have certain ads on our site, and we felt it was time to notify our users ... please do NOT click any ads you do not recognize. If you are someone in a position of power in the IT world, we strongly encourage you to contact someone who can help stop these companies. It is outright theft of advertising space, and an unethical assault on people's personal computers.

HLT