Take note of the title bar, the first line and the fact that it is only "flat text", with just an "OK" button.
Out of the box, Microsoft Windows NT, 2000, and XP systems allow anyone on the network to pop up messages like this on your screen. You do not need to be running any web, email, or instant messaging software. It has nothing to do with MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, or any other application. There is no need for the sender to know anything about your computer and your computer doesn't care who does it. In recent incidents, people have used this capability to spread SPAM messages like the ones above.
New: If you are looking for a user-friendly tool that does all this stuff for you, try the freeware version of X-Cleaner.
You can disable the Messenger service if you want to although doing so may result in Windows not being able to alert you to some conditions. This may include things like "print job complete", anti-virus, and event logger status messages. Also, "new mail" notifications may not be available in an Exchange/Outlook environment.
Right-click the highlighted line and choose Properties.
Click the STOP button.
Select Disable in the Startup Type scroll bar
Click OK
Windows XP
Click Start->Control Panel
Click Performance and Maintenance
Click Administrative Tools
Double click Services
Scroll down and highlight "Messenger"
Right-click the highlighted line and choose Properties.
Click the STOP button
Select Disable in the Startup Type scroll bar
Click OK
You can verify that the service is disabled by typing the following at a command prompt. If no message appears, the Messenger service has been disabled.
net send 127.0.0.1 "test"
Cure the cause
If you are a home user...
Beware! The problem is much bigger than just receiving annoying messages. It means your Pc is very vulnerable to all sorts of attacks.
"In addition to transmitting net send messages to your computer over the Internet, a malicious user may also be able to use the NetBIOS connection to your computer to perform the following tasks:
Access your private information
Initiate denial of service (DoS) attacks against a high profile Web site
Distribute software illegally by appropriating space on your hard disk
For this reason, Microsoft recommends that you install a firewall and configure it to block NetBIOS traffic instead of merely just turning off the Messenger service. "
When you are responsible for any kind of network, you should be aware of all the security implications of having a Netbios service available to the entire world. All it takes is one Pc that is infected to compromise your entire network from the inside.
If you have not already, block these ports usage on firewall:
Incoming & Outgoing (anywhere to anywhere)
UDP and TCP
Port list: 135, 137, 138, 139, 445
These ports are not needed and should be closed at once. Contact your
firewall vendor if needed.
If this has solved your problem you may wish to try a free scan to ensure there are no additional threats to your systems.
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