Outlook blocks and deletes incoming attachments

[bluetrain]

I have two people who send me .exe files for small jobs that we are all working on. Microsoft Outlook removes these without giving me a chance to say ok or not ok.
Bluetrain

[Macarenas]

I don't use Outlook, but I would think that there is an option under Security settings - as there is in Outlook Express, to allow file attachments with particular extensions.

In OE the setting is 'Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus'.

Edit: found this ....
Outlook 2002/2003 Attachment Security Unlock Applet

[bluetrain]

Thank you I will follow those leads and I will only be able to check in about three hours time
Bluetrain

[Eric B]

The problem is caused by Outlook security blocked suspicious attachments. That does not mean all the attachments you send have the potential to be a ticking time bomb (actually it can, but you need to do some "independent research" on it). In MS Word documents, certain MACRO viruses (or virii) can hide inside them, so ASU IT has set up a filter to block certain file types (such as .vbs, .doc, .exe and etc). Therefore in this case, even though the sender thought attachment has gone out, but the receiver would not get the attachment. Of course the security filter on the receiver end has to participate in this as well.

If you really think this would be a hassle, you can get rid of the security feature in Outlook altogether:

By default, Outlook (part of MS Office) won't allow you send or receive certain types of attachments. The rationale is that these documents can contain viruses or other harmful code, but the fact that Outlook doesn't let you disable or at least customize this feature is just plain stupid. Here's how to do it:

1. Open the Registry Editor (type "regedit" at Run in Start Menu).
   
   
2. Expand the branches to
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\10.0\Outlook\Security
   
   
3. Create a new string value by selecting New and then String Value from the Edit menu.
   
   
4. Name the new value "Level1Remove".
   
   
5. Double-click the new "Level1Remove" to edit it, and enter the filename extensions you'd like to stop Outlook from blocking. Extensions should be typed in lower case, without the dots (.), and separated by semicolons (. For example, type "exe;mdb;vbs" to allow .exe, .mdb, and .vbs attachments, respectfully.
   
   
6. Click Ok and then close the Registry Editor when you're done. You may have to restart Outlook for this change to take effect.

Note:
I shouldn't have to tell you that this means you'll now be able to receive EXE files and other potentially harmful file types over email. Even though the majority of viruses are actually contained in Word documents (.doc files), you'll want to exercise some caution when opening any EXE files you subsequently receive.