Skip to main content

Email Guardian - Getting Started

 
This article is about the Email Guardian feature included in Avast Premium Security. For information about the Avast One version of Email Guardian, refer to the following article: Avast One Email Guardian - Getting Started.

Protect emails online

Email Guardian scans incoming emails directly in up to 5 online email accounts, enhancing your safety when checking emails from any device or browser. To use this feature, you need a paid subscription for Avast Premium Security.

To monitor your email accounts with Email Guardian:

  1. Open Avast Premium Security, then select Protection ▸ Email Guardian.
  2. Click Sign in to Avast Account if you are not already signed in.
  3. Click Add email account.
  4. Enter your email address, then click Continue.
    If you see the error message Sorry, we can't connect to that account yet, your email account is currently not compatible with Email Guardian. However, we are working on adding supported email providers.
 

Select the relevant option below for instructions to connect your email account:

  1. Click Sign in to open Gmail, then sign in to your Gmail account.
  2. To configure your mailbox to work with Email Guardian, tick the boxes next to See and edit your email labels and Read, compose, and send emails from your Gmail account, then click Continue.
    The Read, compose, and send emails from your Gmail account permission is a requirement in Google API rules for third-party apps. To be able to check emails for suspicious content and assign a corresponding label, this permission needs to be granted.
  3. Click Got it.
Google has changed its policies for applications listed under the email reporting and monitoring categories. To protect your account, you need to renew Gmail access every six months.

When your Gmail access expires, you receive an email to the email address that was protected, as well as an alert in the Email Guardian section of your Avast Antivirus application. Follow the provided instructions to renew your Gmail access.
  1. Click Sign in to open Outlook, then sign in to your Outlook account.
  2. Click Accept to give Avast permission to Let this app access your info?.
  3. Click Got it.

Configure your email account

For some email providers, you need to set up your email account to work with Email Guardian. If your email provider is listed in the table below, click the relevant link to follow the instructions on your email provider's support website. If you already set up your email account to work with Email Guardian, follow the steps below to complete the process in Avast Premium Security.

Email providerSetupInstructions
AOLApp-specific password (only needed if two-factor authentication is on)AOL ▸ Create and manage third-party app passwords
ComcastAllow access to third-party programsComcast ▸ Turn your access to third-party email programs on or off in Xfinity Email
Cox.netApp-specific password (after transitioning to Yahoo.com)Yahoo ▸ Update your cox.net email settings in Outlook, Mail on Mac and other third-party email clients
GMXEnable IMAPGMX ▸ Activate or deactivate POP3 and IMAP
Mail.ruApp-specific passwordMail.ru ▸ IMAP, SMTP и POP3 Mail.ru
SeznamApp-specific passwordSeznam ▸ IMAP, POP3, SMTP
Web.deEnable IMAPWeb.de ▸ Serverdaten für IMAP und SMTP
YahooApp-specific passwordYahoo ▸ Generate and manage third-party app passwords
YandexEnable IMAP

App-specific password		Yandex ▸ Configuring desktop email clients
  1. If you already set up your email account to work with Email Guardian, then continue with the relevant screen below according to your email provider's requirements:
    If you see an error message, click Try again. If the setup continues to fail, click Close, and try again from the beginning using the exact steps in this article. If set up continues to fail, ensure the email address you are trying to add is compatible with Email Guardian, then contact Avast Support for further assistance.
    • App password: Enter your app-specific password, then click Continue.
    • Email password: Enter your email password, then click Continue.
  2. Click Got it.

Email Guardian is now monitoring the email account.

To add additional email accounts, click Add email account on the Email Guardian screen and follow the relevant steps in this article. You can add a maximum of 5 email accounts to Email Guardian.

Remove an email account

To stop Email Guardian from monitoring an email account:

  1. Open Avast Premium Security, then select Protection ▸ Email Guardian.
  2. Under Email accounts, hover your cursor over the relevant email account and click the X icon.
  3. Click Yes, remove.

Your email account is now removed from Email Guardian and is no longer monitored for malicious or phishing emails.

Protect emails on your device

Mail Shield scans for malware in emails sent or received through any email client application installed on your Windows device, including Microsoft Outlook and Mozilla Thunderbird. This feature is enabled by default.

To ensure Mail Shield is monitoring your email client applications:

  1. Open Avast Premium Security, then select Protection ▸ Core Shields.
  2. Ensure the slider above Mail Shield is green (ON).
  3. To optionally configure Mail Shield settings, select Settings (the gear icon).
  4. Configure the Mail Shield settings according to your preferences.
This article is about the Email Guardian feature included in Avast Premium Security. For information about the Avast One version of Email Guardian, refer to the following article: Avast One Email Guardian - Getting Started.

Protect emails online

Email Guardian scans incoming emails directly in up to 5 online email accounts, enhancing your safety when checking emails from any device or browser. To use this feature, you need a paid subscription to Avast Premium Security.

To monitor your email accounts online:

  1. Open Avast Premium Security and select Email Guardian.
  2. Ensure the Overview tab is selected, then click + Add a mailbox.
  3. Click Sign in if you are not already signed in to your Avast Account.
  4. Enter your email address, then click Sign in.
    If you see the error message Sorry, we can't connect to that account yet, your email account is currently not compatible with Email Guardian. However, we are working on adding supported email providers.
 

Select the relevant option below for instructions to connect your email account:

  1. Sign in to your Gmail email account.
  2. To configure your mailbox to work with Email Guardian, tick the boxes next to See and edit your email labels and Read, compose, and send emails from your Gmail account, then click Continue.
    The Read, compose, and send emails from your Gmail account permission is a requirement in Google API rules for third-party apps. To be able to check emails for suspicious content and assign a corresponding label, this permission needs to be granted.
  3. Click Got it.
Google has changed its policies for applications listed under the email reporting and monitoring categories. To protect your account, you need to renew Gmail access every six months.

When your Gmail access expires, you receive an email to the email address that was protected, as well as an alert in the Email Guardian section of your Avast Antivirus application. Follow the provided instructions to renew your Gmail access.
  1. Sign in to your Outlook account.
  2. Click Accept to give Avast permission to Let this app access your info?.
  3. Click Got it.

Configure your email account

For some email providers, you need to set up your email account to work with Email Guardian. If your email provider is listed in the table below, click the relevant link to follow the instructions on your email provider's support website. After setting up your email account to work with Email Guardian, follow the steps below to complete the process in Avast Premium Security.

Email providerSetupInstructions
AOLApp-specific password (only needed if two-factor authentication is on)AOL ▸ Create and manage third-party app passwords
ComcastAllow access to third-party programsComcast ▸ Turn your access to third-party email programs on or off in Xfinity Email
Cox.netApp-specific password (after transitioning to Yahoo.com)Yahoo ▸ Update your cox.net email settings in Outlook, Mail on Mac and other third-party email clients
GMXEnable IMAPGMX ▸ Activate or deactivate POP3 and IMAP
Mail.ruApp-specific passwordMail.ru ▸ IMAP, SMTP и POP3 Mail.ru
SeznamApp-specific passwordSeznam ▸ IMAP, POP3, SMTP
Web.deEnable IMAPWeb.de ▸ Serverdaten für IMAP und SMTP
YahooApp-specific passwordYahoo ▸ Generate and manage third-party app passwords
YandexEnable IMAP

App-specific password		Yandex ▸ Configuring desktop email clients
  1. If you already set up your email account to work with Email Guardian, then continue with the relevant screen below according to your email provider's requirements:
    If you see an error message, click Try again. If the setup continues to fail, click Close, and try again from the beginning using the exact steps in this article. If set up continues to fail, ensure the email address you are trying to add is compatible with Email Guardian, then contact Avast Support for further assistance.
    • App-specific password: Enter your app-specific password, then click Sign in.
    • Email password: Enter your email password, then click Sign in.
  2. Click Got it.

Email Guardian is now monitoring the email account.

To add additional email accounts, click + Add a mailbox on the Email Guardian screen and follow the relevant steps in this article. You can add a maximum of 5 email accounts to Email Guardian.

Remove an email account

To stop Email Guardian from monitoring an email account:

  1. Open Avast Premium Security and select Email Guardian.
  2. Under Protected mailboxes, hover your cursor over the relevant email account and click the X icon.
  3. Click Yes, stop monitoring.

Your email account is now removed from Email Guardian and is no longer monitored for malicious or phishing emails.

Protect emails on your device

Email Guardian scans for malware in emails sent or received through any email client application installed on your Mac, including Apple Mail and Microsoft Outlook. This feature is enabled by default in all versions of Avast Security.

To ensure Email Guardian is monitoring your email client applications:

  1. Open Avast Premium Security and select Email Guardian.
  2. In the Overview tab and ensure the slider is green (ON).
  3. To optionally configure Email Guardian settings, select Settings (the gear icon).
  4. Configure the Email Guardian settings according to your preferences.

Add exceptions

You can add domains which will be excepted from Email Guardian scans. This applies only for protection of mail applications installed on this Mac.

  1. Open Avast Premium Security and select Email Guardian.
  2. Select Settings (the gear icon).
  3. Click Add exceptions.
  4. Enter the domain name you do not want to scan and choose the relevant protocols. Click Add.
To remove a server from the exception list, hover your cursor over the relevant item and click (the trash icon).
This article is about the Email Guardian feature included in Avast Mobile Security Premium. For information about the Avast One version of Email Guardian, refer to the following article: Avast One Email Guardian - Getting Started.

Protect emails online

Email Guardian scans incoming emails directly in up to 5 online email accounts, enhancing your safety when checking emails from any device or browser. To use this feature, you need a paid version of Avast Mobile Security Premium.

To monitor your email accounts online:

  1. Tap the Avast Mobile Security icon on your device. The app opens.
  2. Tap Explore ▸ Email Guardian.
  3. Click Sign in if you are not already signed in to your Avast Account.
  4. Enter your Avast Account credentials and tap Continue.
    If you see the error message Sorry, we can't connect to that account yet, your email account is currently not compatible with Email Guardian. However, we are working on adding supported email providers.
Select the relevant option below for instructions to connect your email account:
  1. Tap Add mailbox.
  2. Enter your email address and tap Continue.
  3. Tap Sign in and sign into your email account in the web browser window that appears.
  4. To configure your mailbox to work with Email Guardian, tick the boxes next to See and edit your email labels and Read, compose, and send emails from your Gmail account, then tap Continue. Optionally, allow Avast Email Guardian ongoing access to Google Account data so that you do not need to review access every 6 months.
    The Read, compose, and send emails from your Gmail account permission is a requirement in Google API rules for third-party apps. To be able to check emails for suspicious content and assign a corresponding label, this permission needs to be granted.
  5. Tap Got it to go back to the main Email Guardian page.
Google has changed its policies for applications listed under the email reporting and monitoring categories. To protect your account, you need to renew Gmail access every six months.

When your Gmail access expires, you receive an email to the email address that was protected, as well as an alert in the Email Guardian section of your Avast Antivirus application. Follow the provided instructions to renew your Gmail access.
  1. Tap Add mailbox.
  2. Enter your email address and tap Continue.
  3. Tap Sign in and sign into your email account in the web browser window that appears.
  4. Tap Accept to give Avast permission to Let this app access your info?.
  5. Tap Got it to go back to the main Email Guardian page.

Configure your email account

For some email providers, you need to set up your email account to work with Email Guardian. If your email provider is listed in the table below, click the relevant link to follow the instructions on your email provider's support website. After setting up your email account to work with Email Guardian, follow the steps below to complete the process in Avast Mobile Security Premium.

Email providerSetupInstructions
AOLApp-specific password (only needed if two-factor authentication is on)AOL ▸ Create and manage third-party app passwords
ComcastAllow access to third-party programsComcast ▸ Turn your access to third-party email programs on or off in Xfinity Email
Cox.netApp-specific password (after transitioning to Yahoo.com)Yahoo ▸ Update your cox.net email settings in Outlook, Mail on Mac and other third-party email clients
GMXEnable IMAPGMX ▸ Activate or deactivate POP3 and IMAP
Mail.ruApp-specific passwordMail.ru ▸ IMAP, SMTP и POP3 Mail.ru
SeznamApp-specific passwordSeznam ▸ IMAP, POP3, SMTP
Web.deEnable IMAPWeb.de ▸ Serverdaten für IMAP und SMTP
YahooApp-specific passwordYahoo ▸ Generate and manage third-party app passwords
YandexEnable IMAP

App-specific password		Yandex ▸ Configuring desktop email clients
  1. If you already set up your email account to work with Email Guardian, then continue with the relevant step below according to your email provider's requirements:
    If you see an error message, tap Try again. If the setup continues to fail, tap Close, and try again from the beginning using the exact steps in this article. If set up continues to fail, ensure the email address you are trying to add is compatible with Email Guardian, then contact Avast Support for further assistance.
    • App-specific password: Enter your app-specific password, then click tap Continue.
    • Email password: Enter your email password, then tap Continue.
  2. Tap Got it to go back to the main Email Guardian page.

Email Guardian is now monitoring the email account.

To add additional email accounts, click Add mailbox on the Email Guardian screen and follow the relevant steps in this article. You can add a maximum of 5 email accounts to Email Guardian.

Remove an email account

To stop Email Guardian from monitoring an email account:

  1. Tap the Avast Mobile Security icon on your device. The app opens.
  2. Tap Explore ▸ Email Guardian.
  3. Tap (the trash icon) ▸ Remove.

Your email account is now removed from Email Guardian and is no longer monitored for malicious or phishing emails.

This article is about the Email Guardian feature included in Avast Mobile Security Premium. For information about the Avast One version of Email Guardian, refer to the following article: Avast One Email Guardian - Getting Started.

Protect emails online

Email Guardian scans incoming emails directly in up to 5 online email accounts, enhancing your safety when checking emails from any device or browser. To use this feature, you need a paid version of Avast Mobile Security Premium.

To monitor your email accounts online:

  1. Tap the Avast Mobile Security icon on your device. The app opens.
  2. Under Avoid scams with Email Guardian, tap Add email account twice.
  3. Click Sign in if you are not already signed in to your Avast Account.
  4. Enter your email address and tap Continue.
    If you see the error message Sorry, we can't connect to that account yet, your email account is currently not compatible with Email Guardian. However, we are working on adding supported email providers.
Select the relevant option below for instructions to connect your email account:
  1. Tap Sign in and sign into your email account in the web browser window that appears.
  2. To configure your mailbox to work with Email Guardian, tick the boxes next to See and edit your email labels and Read, compose, and send emails from your Gmail account, then tap Continue.
    The Read, compose, and send emails from your Gmail account permission is a requirement in Google API rules for third-party apps. To be able to check emails for suspicious content and assign a corresponding label, this permission needs to be granted.
  3. Tap Got it to go back to the main Email Guardian page.
Google has changed its policies for applications listed under the email reporting and monitoring categories. To protect your account, you need to renew Gmail access every six months.

When your Gmail access expires, you receive an email to the email address that was protected, as well as an alert in the Email Guardian section of your Avast Antivirus application. Follow the provided instructions to renew your Gmail access.
  1. Tap Sign in and sign into your email account in the web browser window that appears.
  2. Tap Accept to give Avast permission to Let this app access your info?.
  3. Tap Got it to go back to the main Email Guardian page.

Configure your email account

For some email providers, you need to set up your email account to work with Email Guardian. If your email provider is listed in the table below, click the relevant link to follow the instructions on your email provider's support website. After setting up your email account to work with Email Guardian, follow the steps below to complete the process in Avast Mobile Security Premium.

Email providerSetupInstructions
AOLApp-specific password (only needed if two-factor authentication is on)AOL ▸ Create and manage third-party app passwords
ComcastAllow access to third-party programsComcast ▸ Turn your access to third-party email programs on or off in Xfinity Email
Cox.netApp-specific password (after transitioning to Yahoo.com)Yahoo ▸ Update your cox.net email settings in Outlook, Mail on Mac and other third-party email clients
GMXEnable IMAPGMX ▸ Activate or deactivate POP3 and IMAP
Mail.ruApp-specific passwordMail.ru ▸ IMAP, SMTP и POP3 Mail.ru
SeznamApp-specific passwordSeznam ▸ IMAP, POP3, SMTP
Web.deEnable IMAPWeb.de ▸ Serverdaten für IMAP und SMTP
YahooApp-specific passwordYahoo ▸ Generate and manage third-party app passwords
YandexEnable IMAP

App-specific password		Yandex ▸ Configuring desktop email clients
  1. If you already set up your email account to work with Email Guardian, then continue with the relevant screen below according to your email provider's requirements:
    If you see an error message, tap Try again. If the setup continues to fail, tap Close, and try again from the beginning using the exact steps in this article. If set up continues to fail, ensure the email address you are trying to add is compatible with Email Guardian, then contact Avast Support for further assistance.
    • App-specific password: Enter your app-specific password, then tap Continue.
    • Email password: Enter your email password, then tap Continue.
  2. Tap Got it to go back to the main Email Guardian page.

Email Guardian is now monitoring the email account.

To add additional email accounts, click Add mailbox on the Email Guardian screen and follow the relevant steps in this article. You can add a maximum of 5 email accounts to Email Guardian.

Remove an email account

To stop Email Guardian from monitoring an email account:

  1. Tap the Avast Mobile Security icon on your device. The app opens.
  2. Tap Open Email Guardian.
  3. Tap ⋮ More options (the three dots) ▸ Remove mailbox

Your email account is now removed from Email Guardian and is no longer monitored for malicious or phishing emails.

Further recommendations

For more information about Email Guardian, refer to the following article:

  • Avast Premium Security
  • Avast Mobile Security Premium
  • Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS


Updated on: 01/04/2025

Was this article helpful?

Need additional help?

Contact us
Avast logo
New Zealand
For home
For partners
Company
Avast logo © 2025 Gen Digital Inc. All rights reserved.
Privacy policy Products policy Legal Report vulnerability Contact security Modern Slavery Statement Do not sell my info Subscription details