Does avast block IRC servers when using mIRC?

Avast Free Antivirus / Premium Security
1

I have been trying to connect to irc.perl.org:6667 with mIRC and can’t seem to get a stable connection. I keep getting an error ([10053] Software caused connection abort). I am wondering if avast may be the software which is causing the problem. How do I find out?

2

I can connect to it with InstantBird

The IM shield does list mIRC so maybe try disabling the IM Shield and see if that has an effect.

Also, can you connect to any other servers?

3

I am currently connected to freenode and SLASHnet.