hotmail scanning

Viruses and worms
1

I’m not sure if Avast is scanning my incoming e-mail (I use windows live hotmail). Is it? I have an e-mail that is questionable that I’m not sure I should open and would like to scan it first. thanks

2

To see if avast! is scanning emails, check one of these points:

  1. Is the avast icon (the special one of email scanning) be shown in the system tray?

  2. Is your email header with the lines X-Antivirus: avast! (VPS XXXXXX-X, XX/XX/2008), Inbound message and X-Antivirus-Status: Clean? (Right click the message, choose Properties and Details)

  3. Are clean notes added at the bottom of the email? (Internet Mail provider settings)

[b]You can test the security of your email system here: http://www.gfi.com/emailsecuritytest/[/b]

3

What is questionable about the email ?

Isn’t this webmail, viewed through your browser ?

Where is this email, if it is already on your system and it was downloaded using POP3 then it should have been scanned, check the options given by Tech to confirm.

4

  1. When I place my cursor over the avast icon in the system tray, I get a message that there are 7 providers total, 6 running. When I clicked on the icon, I can see that the one not running is the Outlook/exchange. Internet mail is listed as running. It also says that 0 has been scanned and 0 infected.

  2. When I right click the e-mail message, I don’t get and option of “properties and details”. Other than the usual (mark as read, delete, junk, etc), the only thing I get is “view message source” which is not much help.

  3. I’m not sure what you mean by ‘clean notes’ at the bottom of the e-mail. sorry, I’m a newbie.

any e-mail from a sender I don’t recognize is ‘questionable’ to me. I’d just like to confirm whether or not Avast is scanning my hotmail e-mail before I open them.
thanks

5

Maybe this help: http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=11589.0 Microsoft is turning off support for the protocol (WebDav) that supports old free Hotmail account. All Hotmail to POP converters that relied on WebDav will cease to work.
http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=35595.msg299254#msg299254

Hotmail in Windows Live Mail is retrieved via a proprietary method of Microsoft’s called DeltaSync (it is a special form of http browser access). It is not retrieved using the standard POP3 methods that avast is able to scan so Hotmail cannot be scanned in Windows Live Mail.

The POP/SMTP servers gradually being provided by Hotmail for users of non-MS clients (like Thunderbird etc) support only secured connections so again avast will not scan those (without additional steps). http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=32050.0;topicseen

6

I read the forums that you provided links for although some of it is over the top for me. I understand that I have no protection from Avast with respect to my hotmail account. Forgive this perhaps stupid question but would my windows firewall provide any help if I were to open an infected e-mail? Am I completely unprotected?

thanks again

7
Am I completely unprotected?

No, all Hotmails in/out Web/pop/deltasync are scanned for spam and virus by Trend Micro

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/26/trend_loves_redmond/

8

Is Trend Micro effective? without prejudice if possible…

9
Insert Quote Is Trend Micro effective? without prejudice if possible...

http://mtc.sri.com/live_data/av_rankings/

http://reviews.cnet.com/internet-security-and-firewall/trend-micro-internet-security/4505-3667_7-33303136.html

10

from the mtc.sri.com seems like avast missed more than Trend Micro…

and the second link says Trend Micro scored even with Norton…

what should I believe? ???