"An unidentified program wants access to your computer"

Is there a way to prevent the "An unidentified program wants access to your
computer" box from appearing every time I open the same program?

You should be glad that this security feature is enabled/working!
User Account control separates user and admin functions in Windows Vista
which increases security. It basically ensures that malicious programs
can¢t be run using administrative privileges without the administrator
first accepting it. This is great for computing securely.
What is User Account Control?
http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/Win...665471033.mspx

For your consideration:-
The best defenses are:
1. Do not work in elevated level; Day-to-day work should be
performed while the User Account Control (UAC) is enabled. Turning
off UAC reduces the security of your computer and may expose you to
increased risk from malicious software.
2. Familiarize yourself with "Services Hardening in Windows Vista".
3. Keep your operating (OS) system (and all software on it)
updated/patched.
4. Reconsider the usage of IE.
5. Review your installed 3rd party software applications/utilities;
Remove clutter.
6. Don't expose services to public networks.
7. Activate the build-in firewall and tack together its advanced
configuration settings.
7a.If on high-speed internet use a router as well.
8. Routinely practice safe-hex.
9. Regularly back-up data/files.
10.Familiarize yourself with crash recovery tools and with
re-installing your operating system (OS).
11.Utilize a real-time anti-virus application and vital system
monitoring utilities/applications.
12.Keep abreast of the latest developments - Sh!t happens...you know.
The least preferred defenses are:
Myriads of popular anti-whatever applications and staying ignorant.
Peez of pith, really :-)

The message is part of UAC (User Account Control), and is designed to
inform you that a program requires elevated (administrative) privileges
to run.

It's best to keep UAC turned on, as the confirmation messages you
receive are an important part of keeping your computer safe from
malicious programs, or potentially damaging changes to settings. If the
program is from a legitimate source, then your best bet would be to
check the manufacturer for updates where the application is aware of the
new security protocols in Windows Vista.


--

To turn off UAC

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.

2. In Control Panel, click User Accounts.

3. In the User Accounts window, click User Accounts.

4. In the User Accounts tasks window, click Turn User Account Control
on or off.

5. If UAC is currently configured in Admin Approval Mode, the User
Account Control message appears. Click Continue.

6. Clear the Use User Account Control (UAC) to help protect your
computer check box, and then click OK.

7. Click Restart Now to apply the change right away, or click Restart
Later and close the User Accounts tasks window.

Great answer, but I some how got the idea that he just wanted to suppressthe
warning.

My answer for programs that I have NO CONTROL over is to trash them. Especially
a program that has no toggle to turn off internet access.

In some [50-75%] cases if you dig thru the config settings, you'll find an
option to 'check for updates when you launch the program'. And in some cases
this will go into extended config, hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, none.

Barring the absence of this type web access toggle, and you have no idea why it
wants access, there's 100's of other programs on the web that can do the same
thing from FREE - $$$$$.$$
Finding a program that does it's job without calling home every day is fairly
simple. Wish I could say the same about an OS.

My virus checker checks the web every 3 hours for updates.
--
more pix @ http://members.toast.net/cbminfo/index.html

He was already given that answer on another post. He didn't like it so I
gave him his other option.


Great answer, but I some how got the idea that he just wanted to suppress
the
warning.

My answer for programs that I have NO CONTROL over is to trash them.
Especially
a program that has no toggle to turn off internet access.

In some [50-75%] cases if you dig thru the config settings, you'll find an
option to 'check for updates when you launch the program'. And in some cases
this will go into extended config, hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, none.

Barring the absence of this type web access toggle, and you have no idea why
it
wants access, there's 100's of other programs on the web that can do the
same
thing from FREE - $$$$$.$$
Finding a program that does it's job without calling home every day is
fairly
simple. Wish I could say the same about an OS.

My virus checker checks the web every 3 hours for updates.

Thanks for all the responses. I think the issue for me has to do with
installing some older software that prompts the warning when I open it. I
was looking for a way to avoid having the warning come up each for time for
that specific software (in other words, a program I know to be safe). I
don't want to de-activate the warning across the board.

Vista isn't that smart. It doesn't "learn" from what you tell it
previously. Therefore if you have some legacy application written way
before Microsoft's latest phony push about security Vista will nag
about the same thing every time you repeat the action that caused it
in the first place even if you tell Vista you trust the application,
it has no ability to remember what you told it last time.

This of course could be easily modified by some kind of "rules" list
similar to what many firewall applications use. They nag ONLY once,
the first time something happens it suspects. After it flags a suspect
application it brings up a screen and you tell it how you want it
handled in the future then it remembers and it does as you wish.
Microsoft apparently doesn't have software engineers smart enough to
employ this simple strategy.

The naysayers club (fanboys) out of ignorance will claim this type of
solution is too simplistic falsely arguing some malware could trick
it's way into being trusted. The reality is good security software can
compare a file's unique signature and if something comes along and
pretends to be something you've told it to trust unless it has the
exact same signature (like a fingerprint) it still would flag it and
give a warning.

My biggest gripe about Windows is it is a mature application having
been around over twenty years in one form or another and still
Microsoft hasn't included even basic intelligence, yet each new
version grows larger than the previous one.

The only way to get UAC to stop nagging short of turning the damn
thing off is to change ownership and permissions for each of your
problem applications/folders/files by accessing their security tab.
While it isn't that hard to do, it is clumsy and time consuming if you
have a lot of things to change.

Seems they never read the story Peter and the Wolf either. UAC will
condition people to hit OK every time due to it popping up for each and
every little thing.

No, there's no way to prevent that dialog box from appearing short of
turning off UAC.
Vista will nag you each and everytime you start that particular program.