I discovered this, because one of my PC could not update the iAVS Patterns and gave error messages from avast.
Digging deeper into the problem I found out that the K9 Web Protection (Web Site blocker for kids) was the problem.
Some weird user (maybe he wanted to harm avast) asked Blue Coat to rate avast as Spyware and therefore (maybe not knowing avast) BlueCoat changed the rating of avast.com.
I wrote to them to change the rating back to normal, so users who use K9 Web Protection are getting regular avast updates again.
Another workaround is to always allow avast.com in the control center of K9.
Of course they matter. Maybe not so much in the home user market, but for enterprises surely.
They make enterprise class proxy and security appliances. They are well known.
I am also a user of K9. They have one of the best parental controls in the market and is for free. The best if you ask me specially if you don’t forget your password for it. I also had that issue. Same work around.
Yes, their free K9 Web Protection Product is the “Avast” of Web Filtering Software ;D
It has everything in it that you normally get only from paid products.
It can even trigger a barking dog sound, when your kid browses shady sites
Didn’t know they use something from Avast. Hehehehe…
Yeah… Got it installed on the PC of my nephew (Windows XP, SP3) who happens to be a 10 year old. Really does its job.
It is even better than paid parental controls that can be bypassed so easily. I tested K9 before installing it in my nephew’s PC as he has some geekie friends. Booting in Safemode doesn’t get rid of it. As long as you don’t know the password, it will lock you out.
Thank you for submitting http://avast.com/ to Blue Coat Systems, Inc.
You suggested the following rating(s): Computers/Internet
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This site has been reviewed. Previously, it was rated as Computers/Internet, and Spyware/Malware Sources. These ratings have been changed. The site is now rated as Computers/Internet.
This rating change could take a few days to be reflected in your K9 application. For further explanation or to see this change immediately, click here.
If you continue to have problems, or if you have any other questions, feel free to reply to this message.
As I wrote earlier: If you want to be on the absolute safe side, put avast.com into the whitelist (always allow) of K9, so a false rating from BlueCoat for avast won’t affect you again.