My recent jag of spam site sleuthing unveiled a nasty one: Polbelnot.live. This site, which masquerades as something else, tries to trick you into subscribing to its push notifications.
Obviously, what you’re signing up for isn’t useful or even real. Once you’ve given the green light, your device is hit by an endless wave of annoying pop-up ads. These aren’t just any pop-ups — they’re obnoxious and likely link to shadier places on the internet if clicked. The prompts on Polbelnot.live use cleverly disguised lures that make it seem like you’re opting in for a normal online service. In reality, though, it’s just a ploy to push ads that are not only irrelevant but also potentially dangerous.
Here’s what more we know about this fake website.
What is Polbelnot.live?
Polbelnot.live is a site that tricks visitors into accepting push notifications that they don’t want. It does this by throwing up bogus browser errors and then suggesting that you “Allow Notifications” to fix them. Once users fall into the trap and click “allow,” the site bombards their systems with obnoxious pop-up ads 24/7 — whether their browsers are open or not.
Key characteristics:
Deceptive Push Notifications: Fake system warnings and alerts coerce users into enabling push notifications on their devices.
Unwanted Pop-up Ads: If Polbelnot.live is allowed to send notifications to your device, it will serve obnoxious ads through them.
Pop-up Blocker Circumvention: By coercing users into enabling push notifications, Polbelnot.live can get around browser pop-up blockers.
Why am I seeing these ads?
If out of nowhere a boatload of Polbelnot.live pop-ups hits your screen, then odds are good you accidentally enabled push notification permission for the site. The site uses a number of tactics to make this happen, including fake error pages, hidden notification prompts, redirects, software bundling and social engineering.
Steps to Remove Polbelnot.live Pop-up Ads
Knowing how to fight back is crucial. Experts suggest following these steps in order to successfully remove Polbelnot.live’s influence from your system: Revoke the site’s permission to send you notifications through your browser settings, run a deep scan of your system with reputable antivirus software to find and kill any malware that may be lurking on it, practice safe browsing techniques and habits to avoid future incidents and consider installing ad-blocking or anti-tracking tools as an added layer of protection from similar threats in the future.
Remove Permission for Push Notifications
Withdraw access to Polbelnot.live in your browser settings to halt additional notifications.
Google Chrome
- Open Google Chrome.
- Click on the three vertical dots in the top right corner to open the menu, then select “Settings.”
- On the left, click “Privacy and Security,” then click “Site Settings.”
- Scroll down to “Permissions” and select “Notifications.”
- Under the “Allow” section, find and click on the Polbelnot.live entry. Click on the three vertical dots next to the entry and choose “Remove” or “Block.”
Microsoft Edge
- Open Microsoft Edge.
- Click on the three horizontal dots in the top right corner, then select “Settings.”
- Under “Privacy, search, and services,” click on “Site permissions.”
- Select “Notifications.”
- Under the “Allow” section, find the Polbelnot.live entry. Click on the three horizontal dots next to the entry and select “Remove.”
Mozilla Firefox
- Open Mozilla Firefox.
- Click on the three horizontal lines in the top right corner to open the menu, then select “Options.”
- Click on “Privacy & Security” in the left sidebar.
- Scroll down to the “Permissions” section and click on “Settings” following “Notifications.”
- Locate Polbelnot.live in the list. In the drop-down menu next to its name, select “Block.” Next, Click “Remove website.”
Remove Adware Browser Add-Ons
Erase and uninstall add-ons that are causing a ruckus. Here’s how:
Extensions on your browser can be the root of many problems. You heard me right! These nifty little tools often have access to some of your most sensitive information. Here’s what you need to know about them:
Data privacy: Extensions spy on your browsing habits like no one else. They’ll track down every website, search entry and form data they can get their grubby hands on — without your consent even! Then, they ship it off to some third party.
Unauthorized access and control: Some extensions will ask for all sorts of permissions. That allows them to play with settings you never knew existed as well as your homepage. But don’t think that’s all they’re capable of… oh no! The really nasty ones will hijack your searches and redirect you somewhere else entirely just so they can line their pockets with ad revenue.
Malware and adware: I don’t care what anyone says — there is such thing as a bad extension! In fact, some are so bad that they act as malware or adware themselves. They’ll plop annoying ads right onto the pages that you visit or force search engines to go straight to an advertisement site when you try and look something up.
Resource usage: This may not sound like a big deal, but trust me — it’s irritating af! Harmful extensions use up way too much memory and CPU power. Your computer will slow down at best, crash at worst!
Security vulnerabilities: No software is perfect. As much as I hate to say it… extensions included. If someone wanted to hack into the system or steal data, this is where they would do it!
Phishing: It takes one bad apple to spoil the bunch — especially if it looks just like the rest! Extensions can pretend to be trustworthy only long enough for them to get what they want. They may record keystrokes or take advantage of the data that’s filled out in web forms.
Bypassing security protocols: Extensions can be sneaky little suckers sometimes. They have a way of avoiding all the normal precautions on your browser or computer. It’s like giving a burglar a key to your front door!
Now, I’m not saying you should hate all extensions with every ounce of your being… but if you do, I won’t judge! Some are quite helpful, believe it or not. Just make sure to only install them from trustworthy sources like the official web store for your browser. And don’t forget to pay attention — blindly accepting permissions is exactly how you end up with a virus!
Google Chrome
- Open Google Chrome.
- Type chrome://extensions/ in the address bar and press Enter.
- Look through the list of installed extensions. If you find any extension you don’t recognize, don’t trust, or seem like adware, click the “Remove” button next to it.
Microsoft Edge
- Open Microsoft Edge.
- Type edge://extensions/ in the address bar and press Enter.
- Review the list of installed extensions. For any suspicious or unnecessary extension, click the “Remove” button.
Mozilla Firefox
- Open Mozilla Firefox.
- Type about:addons in the address bar and press Enter.
- Browse through the list of installed add-ons. If you encounter any add-on you don’t recognize or seem like adware, click the “Remove” or “Disable” button next to it.
Scan Your PC for Malware
Use tools like Malwarebytes (recommended), AdwCleaner, ESET Online Scanner, Sophos HitmanPRO, and Adware Removal Tool by TSA to thoroughly scan and clean your system.
Combo Cleaner
Combo Cleaner is a cleaning and antivirus program for Mac, PC, and Android devices. It is equipped with features to protect devices from various types of malware, including spyware, trojans, ransomware, and adware. The software includes tools for on-demand scans to remove and prevent malware, adware, and ransomware infections. It also offers features like a disk cleaner, big files finder (free), duplicate files finder (free), privacy scanner, and application uninstaller.
Follow the installation instructions to install the application on your device. Open Combo Cleaner after installation.
- Click the "Start scan" button to initiate a malware removal scan.
- Wait for Combo Cleaner to detect malware threats on your computer.
- When the Scan is finished, Combo Cleaner will show the found malware.
- Click "Move to Quarantine" to move the found malware to quarantine, where it can't harm your computer anymore.
- A malware scan summary is shown to inform you about all threats found.
- Click "Done" to close the scan.
Use Combo Cleaner regularly to keep your device clean and protected. Combo Cleaner will remain active on your computer to protect your computer from future threats that try to attack your computer. If you have any questions or issues, Combo Cleaner offers a dedicated support team available 24/7.
Enjoy your adware-free computer. Thanks for reading!