2 posts tagged “wtf?”
The Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 update, pushed through the Windows Update service to all recent editions of Windows in February 2009, installs the Microsoft .NET Framework Assistant Firefox extension without asking your permission.
This update adds to Firefox one of the most dangerous vulnerabilities present in all versions of Internet Explorer: the ability for websites to easily and quietly install software on your PC. Since this design flaw is one of the reasons you may have originally chosen to abandon IE in favor of a safer browser like Firefox, you may wish to remove this extension with all due haste.
In addition to all that, it's not compatible with Firefox 3.5 so it's been disabled and they haven't bothered doing an update. Even worse, the extension has prevented users from uninstalling it so it just sits there looking stupid. It's possible to uninstall this junk after some lengthy registry editing, instructions here. I don't understand how any company, be it Microsoft or Apple or anyone else, to think it's okay to install junk on your computer without asking and then make it a nightmare to get rid of it by manually editing the system.
