Avast Free Auto Renewed for 3 More Months -- Why/How?

[ManyQs]

I allowed my Avast Free to expire on May 13th, but wasn't quite finished with Avast related matters and simply allowed it to remain in that expired state and receiving the constant popups warning it was expired (I didn't mind) and had MSE put into realtime mode and just a few moments ago I turned that computer back on after it was off for about an hour, it booted up a bit strangely and suddenly I see the little dark blue popup "avast! Information" which states "An update to your version ..." and I am now looking at a screenshot that I grabbed that indicates the expiration date is 8/22/2013 1:31:50 AM.

Can anyone explain this, please?

I am especially interested in where the documentation is that explains that an expired program can be automatically renewed.

Thank you.

EDIT: I am trying to again put that question mark where I seemed to have missed the first time.  "Again" because I thought I had done that edit already.

[ManyQs]

Having waited for over 12 hours for a response and seeing nothing I begin to get very nervous.

Nobody from Avast's technical department knows about this?

Or it is so rare that Avast staff is hesitant to respond?

Or somebody has gone to great lenghts to highjack the Avast program on my computer that ...

That last one just couldn't be possible, could it?

But somebody might begin to understand why this is beginning to make me nervous, no?

[ManyQs]

It is very difficult for me to understand why this thread/issue hasn't received any response from an Avast Team member, or other employee.

We know that a member of the volunteer group has noted my presence on the board as he couldn't resist taking a cheap shot at me, but I suspect this is not an issue for the volunteer staff to deal with.

This is an issue that will have to be addressed by the company.  That is, a company employee.  Given the significance of the possible threat to former customers of the company it will likely be one or more executives that will need to focus some attention on this.  In fact, it is the 'former customer' aspect that makes the situation even more delicate.  But that should remain a side issue.  When you have a situation where the health of a person's computer is put at risk because of a policy of a given company that company will eventually be called to task. 

Search engine results don't show any results for this issue, and that might bode well for the company.  But it's happened at least once, me, so it might have happened before and might happen again.  I was lucky because I pay attention to detail, if we can label that luck

[davexnet]

To be honest, the 12 month expiry is just an arbitrary thing, since the you're using Avast! free.
It's not as if you have to pay for a new license or anything like that.

I'm just a user like you, but you have to imagine that avast built this contingency into the product
to avoid losing you as a customer...

[Aventador]

So what your saying is now you have 2 real time antiviruses? Do you know that's a huge mistake. Avast Free is FREE..............It never expires. Avast just has you register so they can get an estimate of how many users are using Avast. Dont like it uninstall it. Its that easy.

[ManyQs]

To be honest, the 12 month expiry is just an arbitrary thing, since the you're using Avast! free.
It's not as if you have to pay for a new license or anything like that.

I'm just a user like you, but you have to imagine that avast built this contingency into the product
to avoid losing you as a customer...

You seem to have missed the point.  And that is the reason I asked about documentation in the OP.

If an expired product is not actually in a permanent state of hibernation/inactiveness, then a warning absolutely must be provided that what happened to me can indeed happen.

The significance of that warning is found within a warning that has been frequently posted on this board for many years.  You do see where I'm coming from, yes?

[davexnet]

Perhaps I did miss the point.  As far as I'm aware, the product "expires" after a year,
and you have to "renew" (re-register) to get another years use.  End of the drama.

I've never seen your issue mentioned on this board ever before.  I just assumed if the user
receives a notification that the product has expired, they either re-register or they uninstall
and try something else.

I've tried parsing your posts, and you seem to be alluding to something nefarious,
but it's not clear to me why this scenario has bothered you so much.

If you get an answer from avast themselves, please update the board so we may better
understand the situation.

[ManyQs]

Oh dear, those big, fancy words -- nefa something -- those just confuse a simple, country boy like me.  Well, maybe not quite a 'boy' anymore.

Anyway, the issue is this.  I think the product is off after I receive the notice it has expired and I am no longer protected.  I think the product is finished.  Not to be worried about.  I don't see any warning that I must uninstall the product.  I leave it as is, but am receiving that neat popup every time I turn on the unit and sometimes during a long session.  I don't mind that popup.  Again, no warnings that something may happen like the product may suddenly come back to life.  In the meantime I have enabled MSE.  Now I again point out that I think the Avast product is not a factor here.  So suddenly one day the Avast product is turned back on with no warning and presto -- I have two realtime anti-virus products running at the same time.  I'm not referring to Windows Defender, now.  That, I understand, gets auto turned off when Avast comes on line.  Not MSE.

So let us say that my system crashes because those two anti-virus products are running.  Whose fault is that?  Am I honestly expected to know that Avast might turn an expired product back on?  I don't think so.

And with that possibility that my system could be damaged I strongly contend that Avast should have provided a warning that I was at risk.

That was about 10 days of receiving the red popup that my product had expired and for 19.99 at 60% off I could get Avast Pro, or just renew the Avast free and at no time did I receive a warning that a possible conflict was right around the corner.

NOW, if I have a very unusual situation that should not have happened, it would have been courteous of some staff member to have already informed me of that.  Since I posted the OP there have been a number of Avast Team members on this board.  But do we yet see a response from them?  An admin was on a short time ago and still nothing.  I don't think that's very nice.

Volunteer staff here can use their backroom forum to notify Avast Team members, but it seems that they'd rather not.  Given that the backroom language about me has been quite foul I am not surprised about that.  But it sure isn't very professional.  There's no doubt there's an issue here that needs looking into.  And my having to spell it out like this to have someone realize the problem doesn't speak well for staff here.

So I'll ask a staff member again -- what happened on my computer vis-à-vis the Avast product?

And thank you, davexnet, for asking about this so I have a chance to explain.  Maybe you could be an asset to this company in a volunteer role.  They need some fresh blood.

[Aventador]

I see no point to this thread except for spamming attention.

[ManyQs]

I see no point to this thread except for spamming attention.

So you think the warning oft repeated that running two realtime anti-virus programs is dangerous is nonsense, yes?

That puts in a minority on this board.

And I think it's very impolite for you to be calling me a spammer.  But maybe that's just your style and we have to put up with that.  No problem.  Carry on.  Have fun.

[Aventador]

Notice how no one from the Avast team has responded..................That is cause no one cares. If your real time antivirus is expiring its up to the user to renew it or remove it. No antivirus in the world uninstalls itself after expiring. Thats common sense. So you thought that once Avast expired it will automatically remove itself? If you thought that then you better go get a better understanding of computers rather then making nonsense threads such as this. Thanks. Have a nice day.

FYI........I had a customer with AVG Free 2013 installing. She had malware on her pc so she installed Norton on top of it. If that AVG's fault? No. Is it Symantec's fault? No. Its the user behind the mouse clicking's fault.

[ManyQs]

My goodness, you are having some problems reading.  I did not write that I thought it would uninstall itself.

Let's see, what did I write that relates to that part of your post?

Okey-dokey, looks like it's best for me to just copy/paste that entire paragraph.  That'll make it a bit easier for you.

Anyway, the issue is this.  I think the product is off after I receive the notice it has expired and I am no longer protected.  I think the product is finished.  Not to be worried about.  I don't see any warning that I must uninstall the product.  I leave it as is, but am receiving that neat popup every time I turn on the unit and sometimes during a long session.  I don't mind that popup.  Again, no warnings that something may happen like the product may suddenly come back to life.  In the meantime I have enabled MSE.  Now I again point out that I think the Avast product is not a factor here.  So suddenly one day the Avast product is turned back on with no warning and presto -- I have two realtime anti-virus products running at the same time.  I'm not referring to Windows Defender, now.  That, I understand, gets auto turned off when Avast comes on line.  Not MSE.

Nope!  Not a thing in that paragraph about it uninstalling itself.  In fact, you'll read that I didn't mind the popups stating it had expired and please buy this or do that.  Didn't mind that at all.  Sure isn't uninstalled if those neat popups are popping up like Christmas time in December -- lots of red in that popup, you know?

Oh yes, and have you ever read about an expired product -- expired for ten days -- that expired product getting turned back on by the company that sells or distributes the product?  Ever read anything like that?  You could help out here, if you wanted to, you know?

Anyway, hope my attempt at clarification helps you out.  Be careful how your read things, okay?  Take care.

[Aventador]

I read what you wrote clear as day. You honestly think that Avast should have told you to "uninstall". Lol. Like I said that's common sense. So you enabled MSE. Mistake again. If you simple enabled it that means you never uninstalled it before installing Avast. Again common sense. Your thread is pointless and meaningless. Hence the reason that no one from the Avast team has responded.

[ManyQs]

Oh my, you are a funny one. 

Well, thank you for your opinion.

[ManyQs]

So I'm trying to get a handle on the timestamp showing in my renewed / unexpired program UI and decide to take a look at some of the logs and see I have some rather specific timestamps as to when the program stopped and when it started back up.  I think, though, the timestamp in my UI has changed (I mean the time zone setting, GMT/JST,etc.), which was why I started this latest bit of studying.  And I have the time to do the studying. 

Anyway, a few copies for anyone that might have thought I have been trying to pull a fast one and that I concocted all this.  Of course, I'd have to download the entire files and do screenshots and all that if anyone wants to accuse me of doctoring those files.  Will that be necessary? 

Oh well, ...

usntr.log

5/13/2013 4:06:25 PM   Processing file C:\Users\xxxxx\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Temporary Internet Files\Low\Content.IE5\KNXBOFVY\jquery.tn3.min[1].js...
5/13/2013 4:06:25 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

5/13/2013 4:08:15 PM   Processing file C:\Users\xxxxx\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Recovery\Last Active\RecoveryStore.{XXX REMOVED THIS XXX}.dat...
5/13/2013 4:08:15 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

5/13/2013 4:34:35 PM   Processing file C:\Users\xxxxx\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Temporary Internet Files\Low\Content.IE5\2J8J0M7Z\skeleton[1].js...
5/13/2013 4:34:35 PM     --> Finished [2] [processing took 0 ms].
5/13/2013 4:34:35 PM   Processing file C:\Users\xxxxx\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Temporary Internet Files\Low\Content.IE5\KDXZFLF1\vce_st[2].js...
5/13/2013 4:34:35 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

5/13/2013 4:37:15 PM   Processing file C:\Users\xxxxx\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Recovery\Last Active\RecoveryStore.{XXX REMOVED THIS XXX}.dat...
5/13/2013 4:37:15 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

5/24/2013 6:51:41 PM   Processing file C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe...
5/24/2013 6:51:41 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

5/24/2013 6:51:42 PM   Processing file C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\IEShims.dll...
5/24/2013 6:51:42 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

5/24/2013 6:51:47 PM   Processing file C:\Windows\System32\Macromed\Flash\FlashUtil32_11_7_700_202_ActiveX.exe...
5/24/2013 6:51:47 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

5/24/2013 7:51:02 PM   Processing file C:\Users\xxxxx\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Recovery\Last Active\RecoveryStore.{XXX REMOVED THIS XXX}.dat...
5/24/2013 7:51:02 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 16 ms].

5/24/2013 9:18:07 PM   Processing file C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Adobe Reader 9.lnk...
5/24/2013 9:18:08 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 31 ms].

5/24/2013 9:18:13 PM   Processing file C:\Program Files\Adobe\Reader 9.0\Reader\reader_sl.exe...
5/24/2013 9:18:13 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

5/24/2013 9:18:18 PM   Processing file C:\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\ARM\1.0\AdobeARM.exe...
5/24/2013 9:18:18 PM     --> Finished

• [processing took 0 ms].

*****************************************************************

This is from the mail.log

5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   SMTP Start: 1
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   SMTP RedirectPort: 25,587
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   IMAP Start: 1
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   IMAP RedirectPort: 143
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   NNTP Start: 1
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   NNTP RedirectPort: 119
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   POPs Start: 1
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   POPs RedirectPort: 995
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   SMTPs Start: 1
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   SMTPs RedirectPort: 465
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   IMAPs Start: 1
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   IMAPs RedirectPort: 993
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   NNTPs Start: 1
5/13/2013   1:23:15 PM   00000710:   NNTPs RedirectPort: 563
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   Started, Log = 1
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   Build 7.0.1466
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   OS Windows Vista Workstation (Service Pack 2)
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   PopListen 127.0.0.1 12110
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   SmtpListen 127.0.0.1 12025
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   ImapListen 127.0.0.1 12143
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   NntpListen 127.0.0.1 12119
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   PopListenSSL 127.0.0.1 12995
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   SmtpListenSSL 127.0.0.1 12465
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   ImapListenSSL 127.0.0.1 12993
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   NntpListenSSL 127.0.0.1 12563
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   AutoRedirect 1
5/24/2013   1:49:27 PM   0000114C:   IgnoreLocalhost 1

***************************************************************

Then there are the various bla-blaShield .txt, but here is the stop/start of the FileSystemShield,

* avast! Real-time Shield Scan Report
* This file is generated automatically
*
* Started on: Monday, May 13, 2013 1:23:15 PM
*

*
* avast! Real-time Shield Scan Report
* This file is generated automatically
*
* Started on: Friday, May 24, 2013 1:49:27 PM

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

By the way, if anyone thinks there's a security risk in my putting those up there please inform me pronto and I'll remove what you see as a risk.  Thank you.