How to set up Avast! for Newsgroups in Opera 7.5

[Clemens_1]

javascript:replaceText(' ')Hello!

I am a novice to Advast! Upon recommendation of an IT-specialist I have installed Avast!Pro on my stand alone Win2000 system yesterday, but did not setup Avast in every manner completely.

I am using Opera 7.5 together with its new M2 mail-and news-client. Wow! A total new quality!

But now I should know precisely, how to modify the avast4.ini in order that Avast! will scan all e-mail- but also all newsgroup-traffic. E-Mail is IMAP and the settings are described in Avast! Help but not any settings or additions with respect to newsgroups.

Is Avast! not a proxy for newsgroup-traffic but only for e-mails?
In case it cannot also be configured as a proxy for Newsgroups, how can I be sure that newsgroup traffic is also scanned by Avast! ?

Further I have not understood, what's about the function of SmtpListen, PopListen and ImapListen as well as StartSmtp, StartPop, StartImap.

Please would someone be so kind to explain it to me?

Clemens / Stuttgart

[rloschmann]

Hi Clemens and welcome to the forum !!  

For details on avast4.ini you can find all the available info here :

http://forum.avast.com/index.php?board=2;action=display;threadid=1647

For the newsgroup, i've never heard of that feature for avast.  

[shgoh]

i guess not

[Clemens_1]

Hello le Doc!

I have already read about the long thread about the avast4.ini - file. But as I did not find anything about Scanning Newsgroup-Messages there, I did start my request.

As far as I understsnd your reply, there is no special feature for Newsgroup-traffic via Avast! as a proxy. OK. Now I know. But how can I make sure, that Avast! can and will scan the downloaded content of newsgroups?

In opera M2, there is only one big database with several indexed files. Avast will not be able to scan there, because if it would find something there and if it would delete such a file, you can expect, that all the database will be corrupt.
Because of this, it would be valuable, when Avast! would do scanning before data is stored in the database of Opera M2.

Please explain it to me. Thank you!

Clemens / Stuttgart

[rloschmann]

Anyway, even if avast doesn't scan your newsgroup database you are protected by the standard on-access scanner since it scans each file before being executed. In other words, even if a message contains a virus and is downloaded, avast will not let you (or any program) execute the infected file. Don't worry !!  

[Clemens_1]

Hello le Doc!

Thanks for your quick reply! In former days I had McAfee running. The "On-Access" Virus-Scan was the feature which slowed down my computer too much. So I switched it off. By this the feature "On Access" has been active only when accessing Floppy-Disk or when accessing e-mail or news.
I even could have the heuristic feature on, when I limited access as described above without noticable slow down of my computer.

I want avast behave similar way! I have read some further threads here in the forum and I see that not everything is as nice with avast, as I thought of at first:

Now I am not so sure, at which point within the data flow avast will scan the data. Til yesterday I supposed, that with repsect to e-mail-scanning,  Avast! works like a proxy and will scan e-mail-data before it is passed to the e-mail client. Now it seems, it only scans when I open an e-mail and want to open an attached file.
I cannot see anything about this theme in the help file.

My computer is relatively safe, because I use Internet access only via a router with built-in dsl-modem and built in firewall, SPI-filter, discard ping from WAN  etc.

The virus scan software, I like I would  prefer it, should simply scan all incoming e-mail and news and all attaches. Further it should scan each incoming data, when surfing with my Opera 7.5. (But now I read in the forum, that in conjunction with Opera no scanning of scripts can be performed! That is not waht I wanted!)
Further the Virus-Scanner should scan those single files, which I get sent from my customers and I start this scanning manually.

Generally / normally it should not scan each access which I do on files on my harddisk with except of e-mail, news and attaches. Otherwise my computer would slow down too much.

In order to find out, wether Avast! will fit my needs in detail, I want to know, at which point in the data flow the scanner will do its job.

Thank you, for your engaged, quick replies. And hope you can answer me my questions.

Clemens

[rloschmann]

Avast DOES scan e-mails (and attached files) before it gets to your e-mail client. It works as a proxy. Avast proxy works for POP, SMTP and IMAP protocols. The only thing is that i don't think it scans for newsgroups. For script blocking, you have to use avast pro version. The home version does not provide script blocking.

The on-access scanner, by default, only scans for file being executed. So it should not slow down your computer. It does not scan files on creation, modification, read, write... If your computer is still slow you can disable the on-access scanner but i really don't recommand it !!

[Clemens_1]

Thank you Le Doc... for your quick reply!

You write:
Avast DOES scan e-mails (and attached files) before it gets to your e-mail client.

Does it mean, that by this definetively no infectious e-mails can be transferred to e-mail-client because Avast will delete them or put them in quarantine-folder etc?


You wrote:
For script blocking, you have to use avast pro version.

I am running the Pro Version because I am running a (small) business here. Because of cotradictious statements here in the forum, I ask back: Are you really  sure, that Pro version will do script-blocking in conjunction with Opera Browser? In the Wish-List for next version someone wished script-blocking for Opera as a new feature.

You wrote:
The only thing is that i don't think it scans for newsgroups.

So I think I will get security here by the "On-Access-Scanner". I will add the feature "proxy for NNTP-protocol also" to the wish list now. ;-)


BTW: I am running "On-Access-Scan" since yesterday evening. No slowing down of my computer! Nice!


Clemens

[rloschmann]

You write:
Avast DOES scan e-mails (and attached files) before it gets to your e-mail client.

Does it mean, that by this definetively no infectious e-mails can be transferred to e-mail-client because Avast will delete them or put them in quarantine-folder etc?

Exactly !! The action will depend on your settings and your choice when the dialog will pop up.

You wrote:
For script blocking, you have to use avast pro version.

I am running the Pro Version because I am running a (small) business here. Because of cotradictious statements here in the forum, I ask back: Are you really  sure, that Pro version will do script-blocking in conjunction with Opera Browser? In the Wish-List for next version someone wished script-blocking for Opera as a new feature.

I don't have avast pro but here are the official features :

Script Blocker (Professional Edition only)

The resident protection of the Professional Edition includes an additional module, not contained in the Home Edition - Script Blocker. This module watches all the scripts being executed in the operating system (so called WSH scripts - Windows Scripting Host). It also scans all the scripts run as a part of a web page within your web browser (Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator and Mozilla).

BTW: I am running "On-Access-Scan" since yesterday evening. No slowing down of my computer! Nice!

Told ya !!!  

[Clemens_1]

Hello "Le Doc" !

Thanks for your valuable reply!

You wrote:
 It also scans all the scripts run as a part of a web page within your web browser (Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator and Mozilla).

Now it's to me to say "Told yah! :-)
Awill does not promise the script blocking feature for Opera 7.5 because it is not mentioned there!

So I fear, script-blocker is not available for my Opera. - But as I am working with it since 10 days and intensively have used the M2 e-mail- and news-client, I am so happy with this, I don't want to miss this any more.


Clemens

[rloschmann]

Nobody's perfect...