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How to turn off Windows Messenger Services

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What is Windows Messenger Service

If you are getting ads in a Windows dialog window that say "Messenger Service" in the title, this is not spyware or adware. It is a messaging service built into Windows which has been discovered and exploited by spammers. It is Windows Messenger Service.

Example:

The important thing to remember is that anyone, anywhere in the world can pop up one of these messages on your computer. At this time it looks as though all these messages will have "Messenger Service" in the Window title. It would be wise to verify with support staff any such message that appears on your computer that instructs you to to take actions that may divulge sensitive information, change your password, leads you to a web site, or take other, unusual actions on your computer. You can follow these directions to send popup to other computers:

- Click Start and Run
- Type cmd
- Type net send * "Hello, this is a messenger service popup for test only!"
- If  your Messenger Service is enabled., a popup window appear on the screen of your computer, 

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Disabling the Messenger Service

To remove the ability for anyone in the world to pop up messages on your computer, you can disable the Messenger service. Its easy to reverse at a later time if you wish to do so. 


Windows 2000
Click Start-> Settings-> Control Panel-> Administrative Tools->Services 
Scroll down and highlight "Messenger" 
Right-click the highlighted line and choose Properties. 
Click the STOP button. 
Select Disable or Manual in the Startup Type scroll bar 
Click OK 


Windows XP Home
Click Start->Settings ->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 or Manual in the Startup Type scroll bar 
Click OK 


Windows XP Professional
Click Start->Settings ->Control Panel 
Click Administrative Tools 
Click Services 
Double click Services 
Scroll down and highlight "Messenger" 
Right-click the highlighted line and choose Properties. 
Click the STOP button. 
Select Disable or Manual in the Startup Type scroll bar 
Click OK 


Windows NT
Click Start ->Control Panel 
Double Click Administrative Tools 
Select Services-> Double-click on Messenger 
In the Messenger Properties window, select Stop, 
Then choose Disable as the Startup Type 
Click OK 

Windows 98 & ME

 Under Control Panel, select Add/Remove.
 Select Windows Setup.
 Select System Tools.
 Click Details.
 Uncheck WinPopUp.
 Click OK.

If you need to leave the service running, block port 135 in your firewall. Alternatively you can try Popup Terminator which automatically blocks those ports used by Messenger Service.

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