Windows Messenger Safety

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My ex cajoled my kid into signing up for instant messenger so they could carry on instant conversations (like the phone isn’t convenient enough). Despite my stern warnings not to sign up for anything, the kiddie went ahead and as a result, my ex claims I’m e-mailing him with “Hey, sign up for IM” when I’m not. Is this just an advertising ploy, or is there a virus issue here? I have anti-virus, firewall, etc. but sure don’t want to be e-mailing everyone I know to “sign up” because the kid did. Should I just be mean and uninstall this or what?

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This is something that happens in Messenger when you add a new contact. If the name cannot be found then it sends an invitation to their email address soliciting Microsoft. I forget all of the details of how the mechanism works, but trust me – it’s not a virus or malware, it’s the Redmond marketing machine. Instead of being mean, you might consider downloading an alternate program like Trillian which does not include this annoying marketing ploy when adding contacts.

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Thanks, Mark – this makes more sense to me now. I’ll try to be nice….

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Peggy, you’re a parent – no matter what you do, you will be deemed evil at some point!

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Peggy, you’re a parent – no matter what you do, you will be deemed evil at some point!

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Thanks, Mark – this makes more sense to me now. I’ll try to be nice….

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This is something that happens in Messenger when you add a new contact. If the name cannot be found then it sends an invitation to their email address soliciting Microsoft. I forget all of the details of how the mechanism works, but trust me – it’s not a virus or malware, it’s the Redmond marketing machine. Instead of being mean, you might consider downloading an alternate program like Trillian which does not include this annoying marketing ploy when adding contacts.

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