🚀 go-pugleaf

I hope the following details might help anyone who might find
themselves in the same perplexing position as I was.

When nobody had replied to my first post, I did some further googling
and found some pages mentioning that my issue might be related to one
dealt with in the following "Security Bulletin" from Adobe:
http://www.adobe.com/support/security/bulletins/apsb06-19.htm

The Security Bulletin mentioned a vulnerability in Adobe Download
Manager version 2.1 Although it wasn't clear that the problem covered
by the Bulletin had any bearing on the messages I was getting, I
followed Adobe's instructions to remove the old version of the Download
Manager.

The Critical Security Alert dialog was still open on my desktop, so I
summoned the courage to click on the "Install Now" button. This
resulted in an error message reporting a failure to remove a file from
my PC because the file wasn't there.

As a result of all this I presume that the sequence of events was as
follows:
1. Adobe's automatic updating process tried to download a program to
remove the old buggy version of the Download Manager.
2. Something on my PC intervened and popped up the Install Now dialog
referring to the Critical Security Alert - Software Removal Tool.
3. I presume that the correct response would have been to click
"Install Now" in order to install the tool which would have removed the
offending program.
4. I've no idea what would have happened if I had clicked "Remove".
Probably it would have removed the removal tool, as a result of which
the program which Adobe wanted removed would not have been removed!

So far (a day later) nothing untoward has happened. A virus check by
AVG has reported no viruses.

I don't know who (Adobe, Microsoft, or someone else) was responsible
for the wording of the "Install Now" dialog that popped up on my
screen. But I hope they can see that it is not exactly helpful to worry
an ignorant user by telling him that he has a critical security problem
involving a "software removal tool" and then invite him to choose
(without any explanation) between "Removing" or "Installing" an
unidentified thing with an unspecified relationship to the "Critical
Security Alert - Software Removal Tool". If user intervention is
required and if it is not possible to arrange for a self-explanatory
dialog box then, at the very least, Adobe should put a page on their
website using the same phrases as those in the dialog box so that a
Google search on those phrases will throw up authoritative explanation
as to what is going on, what is being removed or installed, and what
will be achieved by clicking on "Remove" or "Install".