Hi, I’m a new Avast Internet Security user with Windows 7 Home Premium. I’m using Avast version 7.0.1474. Since starting to use the program two days ago, Avast has thrown Facebook notifications by email into the Junk folder of Microsoft Outlook. The program identifies these notifications as ‘phishing’. I used to enjoy these notifications of messages from Facebook friends when using AVG Free. The notifications helped me to decide whether it was worth opening Facebook. Using AVG Free, Malwarebytes, SuperAntiSpyware Pro and Mailwasher Pro, I never picked up viruses and very, very rarely saw any spyware. However, friendly email was never intercepted.
In the Email Shield, heuristic sensitivity has been set on Normal. However, I have just set it on Low to try to overcome the blocking of Facebook messages. I set the Attachment Check to Name/Extension Only, and ticked Use Code Emulation.
In general settings, quick spans are by default and full spans are with high heuristic sensitivity, but this would not affect emails, would it?
Can anyone help me with settings to overcome the problem?
I’ve copied your other post here as it is related to the same issue as this thread, please don’t post in other peoples threads that are out-dated or not related
Quote sheltiephil
Hi, my Avast Internet Security email shield is throwing lots of safe emails from trusted senders into the Junk folder of Microsoft Outlook where they can’t be read. I’ve lowered heuristic sensitivity settings and turned off code emulation, lowered Outlook junk mail settings, sent a generated info file to the Avast ftp server, no reply, no help - thinking of uninstalling the Avast program that I have paid for and returning to AVG Free, where I never had any problems (or viruses or spyware) for years. When you enter email shield into the search box here you find there are lots of recent problems with the shield!
Hi, the reason that I posted on the other person’s thread was that no-one had replied to my questions. Now, it appears that my posting has disappeared from the forum in any case! I wonder why this would be??? Also, I have received no reply from Avast apart from a form letter requesting me to generate a file. I had to learn about sending to Avast’s FTP server, and I was asked to download an application called Filezilla to do that. I did so. I sent the generated file - and have received no word from avast for nearly 2 days since! So, I am about to uninstall Internet Security, clean up the registry, etc, and try installing the free version. Safe emails from trusted users are now being called spam and phishing. This never occurred before installing Avast Internet Security. The number of emails affected is growing. They are landing in the junk folder of Microsoft Outlook and can’t be read! Perhaps I will try posting about this once more before uninstalling, because facebook notifications were the emails most affected up ‘til yesterday. Now, most of the emails received are affected! Surely others will be interested in this major problem with the email shield! :-[ :-\ :’(
Hi, the reason that I posted on the other person's thread was that no-one had replied to my questions. Now, it appears that my posting has disappeared from the forum in any case! I wonder why this would be??
Craigb probably deleted it after moving (copy and paste) it over here
So, I am about to uninstall Internet Security, clean up the registry, etc, and try installing the free version. Safe emails from trusted users are now being called spam and phishing
Hi Pondus, I will turn off the spam filter as an experiment, but although I’ve paid for Internet Security I wonder whether it would better to use the free version again, as an effective email shield with minimal false positives is a key aspect of security. I used to see the filter working with the free version, but there were no false positives. No safe emails then landed in Microsoft Outlook’s junk folder. If the problem arose with updates I am likely to have similar problems with the free version, and may have to uninstall Avast and reinstall AVG free. I always do thorough clean-ups including registry when uninstalling. I wonder whether it’s possible to return to an earlier version of Avast Internet Security? I’ve spent heaps of time downloading and installing Filezilla and learning how to post an information file using that application to Avast’s FTP server. That would be OK, except that Avast have not been in contact, even with a receipt for the file and not with any advice. I used to love Avast free, and I still like the low use of system resources. My bootup time is much faster than it was with AVG. That is the main reason for persisting with finding a solution to the blocking by the mail shield, but turning off that shield seems self-defeating. By the way, the problem remained when I turned off Avast’s firewall and Code Emulation in the file system and email shields. I do not run any other real-time shields. The one in SuperAntispyware is always turned off. I have left the Windows firewall on. My other security never caused problems with AVG free or Avast free. That security software is SuperAntispyware Pro, free MalwareBytes, Mailwasher Pro, CCleaner and Auslogics Boost Speed. I use Windows 7 64 bit, keep everything up to date, run daily scans and never find any malware. Thank you for taking an interest, Pondus
Well, I have uninstalled Avast Internet Security 7 and installed Avast Free, and the mail shield works well without false positives! Safe emails are no longer marked phishing and SPAM They are no longer automatically dumped in Microsoft Outlook’s junk folder so that you cannot read them. Everything works well with Avast’s free version, so, I am convinced that the email shield in the paid version is faulty. The real reason that I would not consider purchasing another paid version of Avast is the lack of any meaningful technical support. As I’ve written, I spent heaps of time sending a particular information file requested in an apparent automatic email, but never heard a word back from Avast in 3 days! I really like the program, but can’t comment politely on help that is not there! Avast Free is terrific in many ways. Boot-up time and system load are much better than when using AVG. Thank goodness for Avast Free!
Avast Mail Shield is not marking messages as spam, neither in AIS nor Avast Free. The AntiSpam module in AIS will mark messages as spam, and can be disabled separately from the Mail Shield. FWIW, I have both AntiSpam and Mail Shield disabled, not because of problems but I have no need for either.
Thanks John, will do - and Pondus, I shouldn’t have assumed that you meant turning off the mail shield when you suggested turning of the spam filter - so thanks
:-[ :-\ :’(