# midADdle adware **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 2, 2004, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/midaddle-adware/253240 "2004-07-02T17:27:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Max\_Carnage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/max_carnage/32/12775_2.png) [@Max\_Carnage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Carnage)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/midaddle-adware/253240/1 "2004-07-02T17:27:37Z")
Ok dammit. I tried to visit a site today and it automatically installed this piece of shit called midADle that throws up an ad in your webpage before forwarding you to the site you wanted to get to in the first place. I’ve run Ad-aware till I’m blue in the face. I uninstalled any new programs I found in my add/remove software list (in W2K). I’ve rebooted since then. I’ve Googled it and only found 4 sites, all of which are basically press releases for this wonderful new piece of elephant dung that hijacked my homepage and now causes “page cannot be displayed” errors, even on pages I use at work for my call tracking software. Has anyone seen this new “marvel” and been successful getting rid of it? (Yes I did read the helpful computer FAQ sticky…that was a cool idea, btw, and I am a hardware tech, but this is just a stumper.) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/midaddle-adware/253240/2 "2004-07-02T18:04:59Z")
If Ad-Aware and doesn’t clean things, try CWShredder to see if it’s a CoolWebSearch infection. If that doesn’t do it, the next step would be to download and run hijackthis and post the log it creates for analysis. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/midaddle-adware/253240/3 "2004-07-02T19:52:35Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > If Ad-Aware and doesn’t clean things, try CWShredder to see if it’s a CoolWebSearch infection. If that doesn’t do it, the next step would be to download and run hijackthis and post the log it creates for analysis. Don’t forget Spybot S&D. In my experience, Adaware is less likely to cause something inconvenient to happen to your machine, but Spybot is more likely to dig out the nastier shit. -Joe, typically runs Adaware unless something nasty just won’t go away ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/midaddle-adware/253240/4 "2004-07-03T02:55:09Z")
Spybot is good, but right now, Ad-Aware is better (it is the only simple way to remove the about:blank CWS variant). At other times, Spybot has been clearly superior. It depends on how the updates are going. However, it’s not a bad idea to run both. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2004, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/midaddle-adware/253240/5 "2004-07-03T03:31:27Z")
This adspeak was amusing … “pushing privacy barriers”. > [@](#): > > AdSpyre Launches MidADdle Ad System > Internet Marketing company AdSypre has announce the beta launch of its MidADdle keyword targeted ad system. The system, similar to Claria and WhenU, works once a user has downloaded and opted into the system. The system tracks online behavior matching user keywords in user-entered URLs, web page forms, search forms and click-through destinations which are then mapped against advertiser keywords generating targeted ad delivery. The ad appears as a between-page unit and is presented to the user upon identification by system as they progress from one page to the next. The user can choose to click on the ad, view it for ten seconds or skip it. If the ad is clicked, the user is delivered to the advertiser’s site. > > MidADdle joins a growing list of companies **pushing privacy barriers** but maximizing advertiser return by matching advertiser messages with user behavior. MidADdle taps a database of five million users who have downloaded game/utility software and opted into the system. While MidADdle may achieve effective behavioral/demographic database targeting without pop ups, it may still face privacy challenges both from users and from sites who may view the between-page style ad delivery similar to legally-challenged pop ups