Hi,
It's likely that another program is causing this- possibly legitimate-
possibly malware.
Disable (for diagnostic purposes) programs such as pop-up blockers,
security, toolbars and other add-ons for IE, anti-virus, etc. Take a look at
any program that might be interfering with IE. You may have to reinstall, or
not reinstall, a program. The culprit is probably not your firewall, but
turn on the Windows Firewall (from Control Panel or Security Center) before
disabling a third-party firewall.
If not caused by a legitimate program...
Start by running BHODemon 2.0 from
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download3550.html The offender may simply be a
BHO.
Then you should also download, update and run Ad-aware, Spybot and (if
running WinXP) MS Anti-Spyware (Beta.)
See these sites for help:
Dealing with Unwanted Spyware and Parasites:
http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
The Parasite Fight
http://www.aumha.org/a/quickfix.htm
Malware Removal and Prevention Overview - CastleCopsWiki:
http://wiki.castlecops.com/Malware_Removal_and_Prevention:_Overview
Bugs, Glitches & Stuffups:
http://www.mvps.org/inetexplorer/Darnit.html
Removing Malware:
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware
What you can do about spyware and other unwanted software:
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/spywarewhat.mspx
Hope this helps,
Don
[MS MVP- IE]