Internet, Networking, & Security Around the Web 35 35 people found this article helpful Don't Close That Pop-Up Window Clicking 'No' may mean 'Yes' by Tony Bradley, CISSP-ISSAP Writer Tony Bradley is a former Lifewire writer and tech journalist who specializes in network and internet security. He is a respected information security expert and prolific author. our editorial process LinkedIn Tony Bradley, CISSP-ISSAP Updated on June 24, 2019 Tweet Share Email Shutterstock Around the Web Browsers Cloud Services Error Messages Family Tech Home Networking 5G Antivirus VPN Web Development Around the Web View More Even with browsers and security technology aimed at reducing or eliminating annoying pop-up ads, it seems that a few still manage to slip in on occasion. Many users close the pop-up box and continue with what they were doing, but "closing" the pop-up box may be an invitation to download a virus or other malware onto your system. Pop-up ads often appear to be standard message boxes that users of Microsoft Windows operating systems are used to seeing. They typically contain a short message or alert of some sort and have a button or buttons at the bottom. Perhaps the message asks if you would like to scan your system for spyware and includes Yes and No buttons for you to enter your selection. Maybe the message is just an alert of some sort with a button at the bottom to close the window. Don't Trust Pop-Ups At first glance, the message may seem innocent. The pop-up ad is annoying, but at least whoever made it and sent it to your computer was nice enough to give you a simple way to get rid of it, right? Well, sometimes that is true, but not always. In many cases, the box or button that seems to be the obvious choice for quickly getting rid of the pop-up is a link to download a virus, spyware, or other malware onto your system. By clicking No or Close, you may be inadvertently downloading malware onto your computer. Safely Closing Pop-Up Ads To avoid accidentally infecting your computer, some security experts recommend that you click on the X in the upper right corner of the pop-up window rather than using the buttons within the pop-up. However, some of the more malicious pop-ups may even have disguised a malware download to mimic that X, and you might be initiating a download rather than closing the pop-up ad when you click it. To play it safe, you should right-click the pop-up ad in your taskbar and select Close from the menu. If you have a pop-up ad that is not listed on the taskbar, you may need to dive into the Task Manager to shut down the application or process behind the pop-up ad. To access Task Manager, right-click on the taskbar at the bottom of the screen and select Task Manager from the menu. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Email Address Sign up There was an error. Please try again. You're in! Thanks for signing up. There was an error. Please try again. Thank you for signing up. Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit