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ActiveX: Your Questions Answered

To use eBay Picture Services' enhanced features like the ability to drag-and-drop, crop, rotate, and submit quickly, you will need to download ActiveX.

What is ActiveX?
How do I download ActiveX?
What are the potential risks of downloading an ActiveX control?
Why do I receive a security message when ActiveX control is downloaded?

What is ActiveX?
ActiveX Controls are software components that add specialized functionality to Web pages. For Picture Services, the Active X control gives you the ability to upload pictures using drag-and-drop and to edit pictures directly in eBay. When you choose Picture Services for the first time, the ActiveX control is downloaded onto your computer.

How do I download ActiveX?
If you are on Internet Explorer 4.0+, you will automatically be prompted with an ActiveX download. It takes about a minute and looks like this:

Make sure you click the "Yes" button to start utilizing the enhanced features!

What are the potential risks of downloading an ActiveX control?
The potential risks would be downloading a control from an unknown source. This is NOT the case when you choose Picture Services. The ActiveX control used by iPIX has been certified by Verisign (the leading provider of Internet trust services) to deliver the highest level of trust and security on the Internet.

Why do I receive a security message when the ActiveX control is downloaded?
The "warning message" is simply standard language to inform you that an executable file (the ActiveX control) is about to be downloaded onto your computer. At this point, you have the option of accepting or declining the download. If you decline the download, you will not be able to use Picture Services.