On Wed, 7 Mar 2012 15:10:41 -0000, "Arfa Daily"
wrote:

I've just got back from a vacation, during which time this machine has been
on, so presumably updating as normal, and now I've got problems with my
email connection, and again, it seems to be Avast! related. Remember all the
problems a few weeks back with it screwing up NNTP server connections
causing all manner of bizarre problems with only single newsgroup message
bodies displaying ? I don't think it was ever fully gotten to the bottom of,
as Avast! tech support didn't seem to understand what usenet was. I still
have the NNTP shield switched off. Now, every time I try to send an email
using T-Bird, I get strange messages about servers giving incorrect
greetings and so on, and the mail refuses to fly. However, if you
temporarily switch off the Avast! shields, everything works normally again.
I have restarted both the programs, and the whole machine, but the problem
persists.

Anyone else having similar probs ?

Check under Real Time Shields | Mail Shield | Main Settings and SSL
Accounts. IIRC, Avast recently started using an SSL connection (to the
well-known SSL/TLS ports) for in- and out-bound mail and Usenet. Also,
*it* wants to be the SSL agent for these protocols so that it can "see"
and scan the plain-text. It does an internal hand-off between, e.g.,
POP3's port 110 and the SSL equivalent at 995.

--
Rich Webb Norfolk, VA