Mils, yours isn't a pop-up, it's an ad that extends/expands out when you mouse over or otherwise interact with it. While I don't like those, they fall into a kosher range with SW and YBN.
Litl, thank you, that URL is very helpful.
I've been in contact with SportsWar, who has been in contact with YardBarker. I have been assured that everything should be fixed/cleaned up very quickly.
They believe they've identified the ad that was causing the browser lock-ups (the "not responding" issues). They've already put an order in to remove and blacklist the ad and host. Hopefully we've already seen the last of those.
The second issue of course is the redirect, which seems to be directly related to the handful of forced download reports. They also believe they've identified the 3rd party network that allowed that through. Both should be eradicated shortly. If I can find and hire someone to track down and set fire to the person responsible, I'll post that video here.
It should go without saying that if you are redirected, that you should close that window immediately. Do not click anything on any anti-virus site you didn't load intentionally.
If for some reason anyone has interacted with that site, and you feel like you may have infected your computer with something, please post here. Most likely, what you'd get from a site like this is a fake anti-virus package called 'Antivirus 2009.' Details and simple removal instructions can be found on the link below:
Remove Antivirus 2009 at CGI Doctor - spyware removal help
I don't know that anyone has been infected with this, I'm just trying to be proactive.
Regarding concerns of spyware and such, I'm going to find an expert on one of the popular tech sites, and see if he or she will volunteer (or for a small fee I'll cover personally) to spend a week or so walking people through the HiJackThis process and analyzing the outputs right here on BP. Whether or not some rogue ads on BP have done bad things to people's computers, keeping PCs clean and efficient has always been an interest of mine, and the last thing in the world I want is for BP to have played any role in taking people in the other direction. So we'll take a week or two and really promote anti-spy-/mal-/ad-ware here, we'll freshen up our "how to keep your computer clean" thread, and we'll get an expert here locally to give people feedback and direction.
I've been crystal clear about the problems and our concerns with our ad provider. Those concerns were well met, and they have carried them forward to YardBarker. I expect immediate changes and improvement to the types of ads we're seeing. Over the last week, above and beyond the problem ads, I've been seeing some in all Spanish, another in part Hebrew for El Al airlines, I mean, we've been running just about everything. While I appreciate the devastating effect the current state of the economy has had on the internet, and in turn ads, I can not and will not continue to devote so much time to having to put out fires related to ads. That doesn't mean I'm going to be less diligent here, it means I've lit fires that have hopefully lit fires, that will spell an end to the type of garbage that's made it through recently. Happily, the ad contact I have at SportsWar is the administrator/owner of another popular fan site (for UVA). The two of us share philosophy when it comes to what ads should and/or shouldn't be, so I always know that he's going to take problems seriously when I bring them to him.
Finally, I am sorry we've had these problems. Most of you know how difficult the decision was to include ads. That distress had NOTHING on what it's been like to know that those ads have been making BP less enjoyable for people. We find ourselves so big these days that there's no real alternative to ad-based income. Our drives are wonderful, and they allow us to accomplish big things like hardware improvements and major administrative tasks by our AZ expert, and they help keep the site on-line as well; but on a month-to-month basis, year-round, it's the ads that pay the ever-increasing bandwidth/co-location bills, and cover emergency expenses (like those incurred during our recent crash). The point here is NOT "we have to have the ads, so grin and bear the related headaches," it IS "just because we have to have ads, that doesn't excuse a single headache related to them." I have what are perhaps impossibly high standards for the people who bring us ads, but even the most simple and basic of those have been violated over the past few weeks. Trust that I am on top of the issue, and will see it resolved one way or another.
