Richie, sweetie..I have no freaking idea what you just said! How in heavens name does one NOT use IE to get on line? I wouldn't be able to get TO ECF without it. Aol, I get..just a picture/operation on top of IE.
From your explanation, I took it that you first connect via AOL and follow a link from there to wherever, like to ECF, HotMaleButtsForMary.com, Over-postersAnonymous.net, etc, etc, etc. <giggle> AOL is an application-based ISP. So, settings can go astray in AOL and carry through to your browser.
Still not sure what your issue is, ma'am... but, I did right click on an image here in ECF and saw there is an option to "block images from ECF" in a drop-down box. I clicked on it and it did what it said it would. A title box popped up simultaneously at the top of the post with the option to "undo", so I did. But, I connect via Firefox, not IE. Your mileage may vary. =)