Search Support

Avoid support scams. We will never ask you to call or text a phone number or share personal information. Please report suspicious activity using the “Report Abuse” option.

Learn More

Odd icons show up on desktop

more options

About once a week or more, a very small FF icon will appear on my desktop after startup. It will have a string of letters under it, like this one: hqWyUevN . I have never clicked on these things and always pitch them into the trash bin. But I do wonder what it is, what it means, and if it's a security issue of some sort.

Please speak slowly and use simple words. I'm not all that tech savvy.

Thanks!

About once a week or more, a very small FF icon will appear on my desktop after startup. It will have a string of letters under it, like this one: hqWyUevN . I have never clicked on these things and always pitch them into the trash bin. But I do wonder what it is, what it means, and if it's a security issue of some sort. Please speak slowly and use simple words. I'm not all that tech savvy. Thanks!

All Replies (5)

more options

I probably don't have the answer to this, but in order to get more eyeballs on this question, may I suggest that you post what operating system you have (e.g. Windows 10, or macOS 11), and also what version of Firefox. You can get that info by going to "Help -> About Firefox" on the menus.

Helpful?

more options

Thanks for the suggestion. I have an HP laptop running Windows 10, FF version 133.0 (64-bit)

Helpful?

more options

Screenshot of the error would help others to know what to look for and what could be done to fix it or find the cause of it.

Helpful?

more options

I tried to get a screenshot but it didn't work. It's just the FF logo with the letters under it.

Helpful?

more options

It sounds like it's possibly a downloaded .htm or .html file. Questions:

(1) Do your downloads normally go to your desktop?

(2) When you see one, if you check the Downloads list in Firefox (Ctrl+J), can you trace it back to a particular site? If it seems to be related to a moz-safe-about download, they are a bit of a mystery, but seem to be triggered on some sites possibly by ads.

Helpful?

Sual ver

You must log in to your account to reply to posts. Please start a new question, if you do not have an account yet.