J-Walk & Associates, Inc.

No Wonder People Hate Microsoft

Like most users, I hate it when software is installed on my system without my permission. It seems that Microsoft has now joined the ranks of the scummy stealth installers: Microsoft Update Quietly Installs Firefox Extension.

That's right. Microsoft is now mucking around with software from their competitors -- and doing it without even telling you.

A routine security update for a Microsoft Windows component installed on tens of millions of computers has quietly installed an extra add-on for an untold number of users surfing the Web with Mozilla's Firefox Web browser.

Earlier this year, Microsoft shipped a bundle of updates known as a "service pack" for a programming platform called the Microsoft .NET Framework, which Microsoft and plenty of third-party developers use to run a variety of interactive programs on Windows.

I'm here to report a small side effect from installing this service pack that I was not aware of until just a few days ago: Apparently, the .NET update automatically installs its own Firefox add-on that is difficult -- if not dangerous -- to remove, once installed.

Annoyances.org, which lists various aspects of Windows that are, well, annoying, says "this update adds to Firefox one of the most dangerous vulnerabilities present in all versions of Internet Explorer: the ability for Web sites to easily and quietly install software on your PC."

I just checked and, sure enough, this unwanted add-on is installed on my system.

Notice that I can disable it, but the Uninstall button is disabled. Uninstalling this add-on requires a registry edit, and a few other actions. Microsoft doesn't ask your permission to install it, but they are kind enough to tell you How to manually remove the .NET Framework Assistant for Firefox.

I don't know how long this add-in has been installed on my system, but I didn't notice it until I read the article.

Microsoft must have an entire department that does nothing but think of ways to annoy their customers.