AT&T Yahoo! changes to more secure e-mail – changes may be required
We’ve had several questions recently from our customers who have AT&T Yahoo! DSL service, and have received an e-mail about an “Important Security Update” with their e-mail service.
In the e-mail, customers are advised that they if they use an e-mail client (such as Outlook or Outlook Express) they need to change some of their settings in order to continue receiving e-mail. They offer an automatic way of changing the settings via download of their “Self Support Tool”, or you can manually change the settings.
I recommend the manual method. As a service to our customers, I have posted step-by-step instructions with screen shots showing the new settings in Outlook Express.
Before starting, be aware that after completing the steps outlined below, Outlook Express may re-download many, many messages that may still reside on the Yahoo servers depending on the settings under “Delivery” on the Advanced tab. We know of a procedure that will not re-download the messages that is too complicated to show in these instructions, but can be done on-site.
1. In Outlook Express go to the Tools menu > Accounts…
2. Select the e-mail account, then press “Properties”
3. Under the “Servers” tab
- Change the POP server to pop.att.yahoo.com.
- Change the SMTP server to smtp.att.yahoo.com.
Under the “Advanced” tab
- Check the option labeled This server requires a secure connection (SSL) and change the SMTP port to 465.
- Check the option labeled This server requires a secure connection (SSL) and change the POP3 port to 995.
- Confirm the above settings then click Apply.
Optionally: Under the “General” tab, replace whatever is in the first box with your e-mail address.
If you have any questions or problems with these instructions, please let us know. We’d also be happy to schedule an appointment to come over and complete these steps for you.
Why it’s more secure…
With a SSL connection, e-mail is now encrypted between your computer and Yahoo’s e-mail servers. This makes it difficult (if not impossible) for the e-mail to be intercepted in-between, unless someone else knows your e-mail address and password. This is the same type of encryption that is used when you visit a secure website with “https:” in the address, such as your bank or websites that you visit when you enter your credit card information onto a web page.