avast vs spams emails (data checking)

Viruses and worms
1

hi,
when I open my email box (yahoo) with firefox and check what I have in the spams section :
whenever I have one of that guild wars email
(I did not open it ,I know its fake, but I can see there is one in the spams list )
avast says it is blocking a “url:mal”
how does this work ? what does it mean ? since I havent open this email, Im surprised avast is already blocking something

        url:http://www.chinaguildwars.pw/return/stat.asp?mail_id=.......etc......yahoo
       URL:Mal

process:c:\program files(x86)\Mozilla firefox\firefox.exe

help a noob please

2
how does this work ?
Real easy. avast sits in the middle. mailprovider <> avast <> email client/browser
3

malwares checked

4

avast scans things between your mailprovider and your email client/browser.

5

thanks !
is it because of the name of a well known spam ?
(I opened nothing ,I know those guild wars spams are bad)

6

No, it doesn’t look at a name.
Names can real easily be changed so that won’t work.

avast scans the content of data.

7

thank you so much Eddy
I guess, I will stop checking my spams list now :slight_smile:
in case avast catch a virus by checking data of spams I would never open by myself

8

maybe I miss something but:

I wonder if its safe that avast works that way or if it increase the risks of infection
cause I guess by checking data (of ugly spams I would never open) , avast download stuff on my pc since it had to stop a virus (right ?)
and cant always succed with 100% virus

checking data only when I want to open an email would be less unwanted spams data checking ,
less un-nescessarydownloads ,
less risk of failure (?)

I doubt the data-checking of spams is done from a server and not form my pc (would be nice)
since the blocking alert opens on my pc

9

avast is not downloading anything except for the updates.
It is your email client/browser that does it.

You find a lot of information through these two links:
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/
http://tinyurl.com/ojkc5qs

10

I see …
avast is just checking
I did not know my client/browser could download a virus just by going to the list of spams emails ,without opening any of those
its pretty scary
can a virus hide between the characters that discribe the subject of an email ?
or my browser is checking the content of spams from the spams list page even if I never open those ?
(scary too- I dont want to check/download stuff I dont need,especially from spams)