Rash of Javascript and HTML Dumping Text on Screen

Looks like failed ad servers perhaps

[incrediBILL]

Anyone notice this rash of sites with raw javascript and/or HTML dumping on the screen in areas where it looks like it should be ads or captions?

Seems like more and more sites I visit have this problem and I can't tell if it's a critical failure of some ad server or something on the web, or perhaps it's Firefox or an add-on causing it.

All I know it I'm seeing a lot of pages with crap that shouldn't be seen dumped on them like it's some epidemic of bad webmastering or something.

Hadn't noticed anyone commenting about it as I think so many people expect to see broken stuff on the web that it's just expected and they expect someone will come along and fix it. Some of the sites I've seen this on have been doing it for a while, some seems sporadic like it's part of a ad server mashup rotation or something.

Anyone else seeing this?

[tangor]

I surf tways. One, FF with Noscript, and never see anything like this. Other is IE11 third party excluded, and see it from time to time. as IE is my "not so locked down" browser.

When I see this it does appears to be adservers and, more often, bad iframe code. But I have not actually investigated it as (wait for it) .... turns out most of those sites are sites I'd hit BACK within a few seconds as they were not quite what the SERP listing suggested. :)

And... with few exceptions, were WP sites. Might be other presentations, but that's my slept since then fuzzy brain memories.

[incrediBILL]

I'm talking a lot of sites with top results in Google, not a bunch of shady sites, some even big name sites with failed iframes and stuff.

Just seems like somewhere one of those that's in the 3rd party mash is blowing a gasket all the time and nobody cares.

If it was just shady websites I wouldn't both mentioning it, but I'm seeing it all over the place.

Not trying to out any sites, but perhaps a link or two might be required to highlight the problem as I encounter it again.

[lucy24]

Anyone notice this rash of sites with raw javascript and/or HTML dumping on the screen in areas where it looks like it should be ads or captions?

Why, yes, in fact. I associate it in particular with tvtropes. Er, I mean as a site behavior, not as a named trope. Some oddities I could always blame on Camino being old-fashioned, but this didn't seem to be one of them. Sometimes it looks more like php being sent out as raw code instead of being executed server-side. I suppose that's a possibility with third-party ads from outdated servers.

[Leosghost]

Not trying to out any sites, but perhaps a link or two might be required to highlight the problem as I encounter it again.

More constructive ( IMO ) to email the sites in question and tell them..or offer to fix it..for remuneration..:)

if it is on iframes and includes etc..could be DNS" wiggy" ..there is a lot of it ( and attacks on DNS )ATM

[tangor]

incrediBILL, I know what you are saying, and not suggesting only shady sites have this problem. I have seen this...everywhere. But since most shady sites rely on third party ads to scam a nickle, predominately there. BUT NOT IN A BROWSER which is denying third party.

That's my only comment in that regard.

And I believe it is important as in so many THIRD PARTY sites (or utter reliance on javascript/jquery) will have the problems and they will grow, not diminish. Once the webmaster lets go of control, gives it to another, failures will occur and the webmaster can do NOTHING to prevent it. (regarding adservers!)

I surf two ways. One quiet (rejecting all but the site itself) and less locked down, merely rejecting third party I have not recognized and allowed. One is messy.

What ALL of these sites have in common is adservers, shady or not.

As more of this gets to the cloud the management/controls are becoming more tenuous, and accountability is getting further removed. So, I am seeing it. Chuckling over the chuckleheads tied to a fractured and flawed third party service and have moved on (monetization wise) to other methods.

That said, this is not going to change anytime soon, nor is the disruption going to diminish until real controls and administration by ALL PARTIES is achieved.

So the ugly will happen from time to time.

[incrediBILL]

More constructive ( IMO ) to email the sites in question and tell them..or offer to fix it..for remuneration..happy!

a) too many of them
b) they don;t always make contacting easy, not worth the time
c) not my problem

I just want to know why there's a rash of code showing on web pages, whether it's a malfunctioning ad network as I suspect or some poorly written sites or WP plugins, but it's not just a few, I'm seeing it all over the place.

I could start a thread in supporters and post links, these sites are just pissing me off.

Saw several today, not sure what's going on or even if I should care but they're pissing me off :)

[tangor]

The web is a messy place, incrediBILL, and I agree! Some things need to be cleaned up. Tend to agree the adservers are malfunctioning, but there are so many other alternatives, too.

But I have a beer and let it go... it's not my (as you noted) problem.

[RhinoFish]

I think it started with the mouse move detection, the one that tosses pop-ups at you when you head for the exits... then someone thought, why don't we put ads right next to the "next" button, and wiggle it a little as the mouse arrives there for the click... boom, ad click.

Nasty stuff like this erodes trust everywhere.

[grandpa]

I've had this happen on my little ol' WP site. One of the Ad plugins requires one to actually pay attention... entering the ad in html mode as opposed to text mode will cause the code to appear every time.

[incrediBILL]

I figured out what it is, it's some Google ad server and it appears to be possibly premium partners, not sure

In Chrome it works just fine, in my Firefox, it totally just dumps scripts on the screen

Here's some of the crap I see with Google highlighted for your easy viewing pleasure

/);N=6>(O?parseFloat(O[1]):0)}var Q;if(Q=N)r:{for(var R=0;R<M.length;++R)if(127<M.charCodeAt(R)){Q=
!0;break r}Q=!1}if(Q){for(var S=unescape(encodeURIComponent(M)),T=Math.floor(S.length/2),U=[],V=0;V<T;++V)U[V]=String.fromCharCode(256*S.charCodeAt(2*V+1)+S.charCodeAt(2*V));1==S.length%2&&(U[T]=S.charAt(S.length-1));M=U.join("")}K.goog_content=M;K.location.replace("javascript:window.goog_content")}}catch(ia){}var W=document.getElementById("google_pubads_beacon_iframe");W&&W.parentNode.removeChild(W);})();
</script> !doctype html&gt; html&gt; head&gt;

Whatever the cause, I really don't care, but it appears I have a natural ad blocker at work.

Go Google! :)

But I have a beer and let it go... it's not my (as you noted) problem.

Not entirely true because it causes OUR web pages to display all jacked up and ruins OUR enjoyment of the web because broken things tend to make our stress levels rise as they tick us off even when it's not technically OUR problem because the experience ruins OUR good time and sends us down a spiral of digital distrust.

Love then web when it's good, loathe it when it's bad.

The next script that runs amok might just push me over the edge ;)

In today's 6 o'clock news headlines, an irate web surfer saw a Google street view car and took chase apparently slamming into it at 80 MPH allegedly screaming "CLICK THIS!" repeatedly out his window during the chase. There's no apparent motive for why this happened at this time. Moving along to today's weather...

[tangor]

The next script that runs amok might just push me over the edge ;)

While I do understand that emotional stress, I've decided that more stress is what I don't need. So the beer prescription.... and nailing down the site(s) as best I can from such external behavior. (And in some cases that means changing my revenue streams to something more stable.... or of my own creation!)