Can no longer get e mails since last update to avast 5 free

Avast Free Antivirus / Premium Security
1

Hi,

I’m not sure what changed in the last update, but since then I can no longer get any e mails unless I disable avast 5.

Win XP Pro SP3

Avast 5 Free:

Engine & Virus: Version: 100310-1

Program Version: 5.0.462

Outlook Express settings:

Servers: POP3

Incoming mail: pop.ntlworld.com.b9

Outgoing Mail: smtp.ntlworld.com

(Is not SSL)

Outlook Express says:
The server responded with an error. Account: ‘AccountNameHere’, Server: ‘pop.ntlworld.com.b9’, Protocol: POP3, Server Response: ‘-ERR Cannot connect to POP server 127.98.9.1 (127.98.9.1:110), connect error 10061’, Port: 110, Secure(SSL): No, Server Error: 0x800CCC90, Error Number: 0x800CCC90

MailwasherPro says: Plaintext password authentication is not supported for this account.

*I am also Using Firetrust Benign, hence the .b9 at he end of my pop.ntlworld.com account in outlook express and the server being 127.98.9.1 which is added in my hosts file as follows:

127.98.9.1 pop.ntlworld.com.b9

Below is a pic of the default list of SSL accounts, I’m not even sure why they are in there, considering my e mail accounts don’t use SSL:

http://img710.imageshack.us/img710/8510/73881308.png

Any help appreciated

Thanks

2

Outlook is saying your email servers do not allow plain text logons.

Try using Secure Authentication checked. This is not the same as SSL.

3

I don’t know how to bring B9 and the mail shield into coordination (a very, very long time since I used B9), because that appears to be using a local IP as this 127.98.9.1 is an address on your local system.

Personally I abandoned B9 as I couldn’t see the point of using that and mailwasher and an antivirus that monitors your email. Not to mention the last update for this program was June 2006 almost 4 years ago, so for me it is much depreciated from its original task.

- Note avast's Mail Shield would scan the email traffic to MailWasher:
- Personally as a mailwasher pro user I have avast IgnoreProcess for mailwasher.exe. Since MailWasher doesn't download the complete email to do its analysis, it only downloads the headers, a small part of the body, it doesn't download images or attachments and it views what is downloaded in text only. Based on this I personally don't feel that any negligible risk worth scanning duplication, but the choice is yours.

By editing the EmailShield.ini file, [MailScanner] section using notepad. C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Alwil Software\Avast5\EmailShield.ini

[MailScanner]
IgnoreProcess=MailWasher.exe add this line if you don't already have an IgnoreProcess line.

Save the changes to EmailShield.ini and exit, the avast self-defence module will ask are you sure about the changes, etc. answer Yes.

The above file location is for XP so you might need to find it on Vista, etc.

If you were to remove the B9 changes from your OE email account settings then I believe the OE emails would work.

Whilst this might not be what you want to hear I can’t see a way to integrate B9 into the mail shields transparent proxy so it a) be able to receive emails and b) they might then be able to be scanned.

4

Thank you both for your replies,

sorry for the delay in getting back to you, I have been a little busy.

I have also had problems using Avast5 and Zone Alarm Pro, seemingly after every Avast5 (program update) I found AvastSvc.exe being denied access to the Internet by Zone Alarm Pro, with no option to allow it access, the way around it so far has been to simply remove AvastSvc.exe form my firewall settings and allow it access when it was next detected, but this has been going around in circles after every Avast5 program update, then after the last Program Update I no longer even got firewall alerts to inform me that it was being blocked, which was odd as my firewall is set to inform me on program blocks.

I un-installed my firewall, reinstalled it, then found that all my e mail accounts worked again !, but I could no longer access the web via any browser unless I turned avast5 off, leading up to all this I was getting one to may blank web pages, sites not loading up and I was beginning to wonder if Avast5 had any known issues with Zone Alarm Pro, as I know that Avast4 did with the privacy features turned on, I never used the proxy workaround in Avast4, as I sometimes use a proxy to access the web, so it would not of worked for me.

After booting my PC today and getting the latest Avast5 engine and virus definitions update, so far no problems browsing the web, Mailwasher Pro works, but Outlook Express fails.

As far as the e mail problems go, I had no problems until the last avast program update and after I reinstalled my firewall the normal firewall alerts were asking permission to connect to POP server 127.98.9.1 and it all worked as normal including b9’s server, up untill my last reboot, so I presume that my firewall blocked access to e mail after The last program update (as well as blocking AvastSvc.exe agin) yet without informing me of denied program access.

What I am going to do now is remove Avast5 with aswClear.exe in safe mode and reinstall it and if it works ok I will wait and see what happens after the next Avast5 program update.

I will look in to both of your replies in more detail after I reinstall Avast5, thank you.

I’m not sure what is going on really, I’m just trying the obvious reinstalls at the moment.

My Original Avast5 installation was an upgrade to Avast4 as soon as I became aware that Avast5 was out, 3 or 4 program updates back at a rough guess, so it seems like a fresh install is at least worth a go.

I left the firewall issues out of my last post because I had almost forgotten about them at the time and after looking in to it all again I remembered all of the other problems that I had experienced.

I hope this post makes enough sense as I have had no sleep for the last 34 hours Zzzz.

In the meantime If you have any ideas or knowledge of Zone Alarm Pro issues please let me know.

Many thanks

Windows XP Pro
Avast 5 Free: Engine & Virus: Version: last update: 100317-0 / Program Version: 5.0.462
ZoneAlarm Pro 8.0.059.000
Mailwasher Pro 6.5.3 (the version that phones home looking for pirates ! hmmm)
Firetrust Benign
Outlook Express 6

5

Honestly, I believe your problem lies in ZA, once you allow the avastSvc.exe process (you should have it remember the answer), it should remember your answer and allow it access next time round. So I don’t believe reinstalling avast will make a bit of difference to that.

ZA Pro has issues in regard to the Privacy function if or when it is set to high, as that can or rather used to get in the way of the 4.8 web shield ashWebSv.exe. So I don’t know if this is still present in relation to avast 5.0 as the avastSvc.exe runs the resident shields, Web Shield, etc.

I have the same version of MailWasher Pro and I don’t see it phoning home ???

6

Yes it could well be :slight_smile: that’s why I reinstalled it to try and rule it out, as I said, I will see how it goes.

My concern was that it may possibly be a problem with Avast5 interacting with Zone Alarm Pro though, so it seems like a good idea to at least reinstall Avast5 as well as my firewall to see what problems I am left with, (I have not done so yet though).

Regarding Mailwasher Pro 6.5.3 phoning home,

I noticed that it was asking to connect to 209.213.221.113 which is a http://www.firetrust.com address, see: http://www.ip-catalogue.com/209/213/221/113/209.213.221.113-server.html

right now my version of mailwasher Pro asks to connect to 209.213.221.170 which at the moment will pull up the firetrust website, as did 209.213.221.113 originally, it no longer does that now though.

I sent an e mail to firetrust about it and the person that I spoke to said that he also had the same version of mailwasher Pro as me (all be it the German version of the program), which he said was also NOT phoning home, (so I don’t know if it was just a minor build), he then asked me if I was using first alert, which I was not, he said that he didn’t know why it was connecting to the firetrust website, but said that it may just be some old code left over from mailwasher free, he said he would ask the programmer about it, but he never got back to me, then some weeks later this blog appeared: http://www.firetrust.com/en/blog/chris/mailwasher-piracy-number

which explains it, as before the blog appeared I used SmartSniff http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/smsniff.html (a packet sniffer) to track down what was going on and SmartSniff listed one of the pictures now on the above blog, all be it a different address (as below), although nothing came up when mailwasher Pro phoned home, it would of done so if I had a pirated license for the program, in which case it would of loaded up a webpage, ranted on about pirates and asked me to pay for the program, I found it kind of amusing after I discovered what it was doing, but I’m still not keen on programs that do that kind of thing without letting me know whats going on beforehand, as to me, it was just phoning home, which seemed a little suspicious at the time.

Here’s part of what SmartSniff still captures when I use Mailwasher Pro:

GET /sites/firetrust.com/files/resources/mailwasherpro/pirate/pirate7.html HTTP/1.1
Accept: /

(The above originally pointed to the pirate4.jpg file which was the current pirate rant/picture at the time, as below)

which would of opened the picture below if I had been using a pirate license:

http://www.firetrust.com/sites/firetrust.com/files/resources/mailwasherpro/pirate/pirate4.jpg

not the full caboodle, just part of what it would of loaded up (on a separate webpage) if I had been using a pirated license (which I am not) and obviously the picture would of linked to a page where a shamed pirate might of actually purchased the program :slight_smile:

How do I add a profile Icon ?, as I can find no way of doing so in my profile settings !.

Thanks

7

Short answer is you can’t, yet.

  • The problem comes from drive by spammers, who having registered put objectionable or commercial links in their profile signature to try and gain link promotion, etc.

There have also been cases of the PM function being abused to spam forum members, so you will notice that you can’t use the PM function either.

Unfortunately because of the actions of others legitimate members suffer by the actions to prevent this spamming.

8

Ahh I thought that may be the case, spammers have caused most of the websites that I have ever taken part in to be locked down in one way or another and link promotion scams seen to be rife at the moment, thanks for letting me know.

I reinstalled Avast5, then rebooted my PC and I could then connect to the web again without any problems, but mailwasher pro could no longer get mail, unless I disabled Avast, Outlook Express sent mail ok but it couldn’t receive it.

So I looked at Avast mail options again, it had pop 3 listed as SSL:None, so I changed it to SSL and I can now receive e mail again using using both Outlook Express and mailwasher Pro, so I guess my mail accounts must of been SSL after all.

I have had a couple of red alerts thrown up from Zone Alarm Pro, the kind you get no option to say yes or no to (other than don’t bother me with that anymore) but these do not seem to be messing anything up, or at least not anything that I am aware of.

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/1424/zapro1.png

http://img41.imageshack.us/img41/2645/zapro2.png

After the next reboot everything was still working fine… so far, so I will just have to wait and see what if anything happens after the next Avast5 program update to see if it causes a problem or not.

Fingers crossed ;D

9

I don’t understand how ZA thinks avast is trying to modify those files as they are normally just opened to be scanned. I don’t know if clicking the More Info button will provide any more helpful information.