outpost exhibits strange behavior anytime it checks for news updates

[palindrome]

Outpost Firewall Pro ver. 6.0.2162.8224

Anytime Outpost checks for news updates it appears to forget my registration data as well as the software version. As soon as the popup notification window is displayed after a news update, if I open the Outpost main window this is what is displayed. Note the red boxes in the attached image below.

outpost_error.zip

The firewall has completely crashed twice after the news update. However if I right click on the outpost icon and click exit and then restart the program it usually returns to normal. Any idea what's causing this or has anyone else experienced this behavior? And is there any way to turn off the news updates?

I'm also experiencing a ton of port scans after I upgraded to Outpost Firewall 2008. Prior to upgrading I might have experienced 1 port scan a month. But now it's like every other site Outpost is detecting a port scan. Many of them are forums which I know are safe. Anyone else have this problem?

[palindrome]

I've also noticed that it doesn't upgrade the firewall components when I check for updates. As I posted earlier my current version is 2162, but at the top of this page the current version is listed as 2168. Why isn't Outpost updating my firewall components? The only way I'm able to update the firewall is to manually download the new version and install it over the previous one. I've attached an image below of what the update screen displays even when a newer version is available.

up-to-date.zip

As a side note, Outpost has detected two port scans from this website within a matter of a few minutes. I'm really beginning to doubt the accuracy of this firewall to detect attacks. It also alerts me of a port scan every time the update screen reaches the part where it downloads the spy6_inc.zip file. And yet that connection is with Agnitum's own servers. What is wrong with this software?