Outlook 2002 Attachment Security

As a tip for solving most operational problems, Outlook 2002 relies on a built-in list of file types to check each message attachment against the file type. The default list is contained in the product, such as a diagram, but you can use an Exchange public folder to clear or personalize the list.

Level 1

These file types are blocked by Outlook (including. bat batch files,. exe executables,. vbs script files,. lnk shortcuts, and. js script files). When the recipient opens or previews a message that contains the type of attachment that is contained in level 1, you receive a warning message bar that lists the blocked files. However, the recipient cannot view or access the attachment itself (at least through Outlook, the client uses the Post Office Protocol [pop] and the Internet Message Access Protocol [IMAP] client to obtain level 1 files). View a complete list of Level 1 attachment types.

Level 2

There is no default file type in Level 2 and you have to add it yourself. For Level 2 attachments, you can view the attachment icon, and when you double-click the icon you will receive a prompt to save the attachment to disk, but you cannot run it directly in the current location. After you have saved the attachment, you can decide how to dispose of it. This is a confirmation that allows the user to blindly double-click each attachment in the Inbox.

When you attach a file to a message that will be sent, Outlook checks the attached file type against the Level 1 list. If you are attaching a file type that is any of the level 1 list, a dialog box will pop up to warn you that the recipient will not be able to open the attachment. Click OK in the dialog box and send a message. Keep in mind that you can let Outlook not give you this warning. Next I will show you how to operate.

When you receive a message that contains a file type attachment in Level 1, your Inbox will be displayed in the folder on the attachment bar to let you know that the message contains an attachment. When you open a mail message that contains an attachment, the attachment will be blocked and the Outlook message box will warn you that the attachment is not available. File | Save the Attachment command line (when you right-click, you can see the view Attachment command line on the shortcut menu) to show that these attachments are not blocked, indicating that the others are completely inaccessible. When you open the message body, you will see a warning message box that lists the blocked files, but you can still get all the attachments that are not in the banned list.

If you receive a message that includes an attachment with a file type contained in Level 2, the attachment will be displayed normally. However, when you try to open it, you will see a warning dialog box that prompts you to run the attachment directly if it is not feasible and provides you with an operation to save the attachment.