How do I get rid of the ask toolbar updater and the ask toolbar?

Is there a red strip (File/View/History, etc.) at the top of your screen (Firefox)? Right click on that to get a menu. Unclick Ask Toolbar.

If you are using I.E. then you go to tools and choose "manage add ons" and you can remove or turn off from there.

Open up Control Panel and go to "Uninstall a program" (Add or Remove Programs if you are still on Windows XP). In the list of applications, find and uninstall Ask Toolbar Updater and Ask Toolbar.
If you have already done this and you still have a problem, look for any applications in the list that has "Ask" in the Publisher field.

Here are a few pages with specific instructions since the ask toolbar is insidious. How to Remove the Ask.com Toolbar From Your Browser | PCMag.com and Remove Ask Toolbar and Ask.com Search (Uninstall Guide) either one should help you to do it the right way.