Is there a method to restore corrupted PDF attachments?

Question

I am using Thunderbird on both Windows 7 and Windows XP Pro computers. When I receive an email with a .pdf file attachment, the file appears as winmail.dat. If I do the 'Save as' and save it as a .pdf, Acrobat says it is corrupted. What is wrong or how can I resolve this issue? I have seen it several times on different computers.

Answer 1

General Repair of Adobe Acrobat Reader

• Go to adobe website, click the "Support" tab on the top of the screen, and click on "Adobe Reader," and then select the "I can't open a PDF document" statement underneath "Troubleshooting." The Support tab is located near the top of the screen as a white word against a black backdrop. After clicking Support, you will see the phrase "Product Support Centers" on a new page in bold white font, under which is "Adobe Reader." The new page after clicking "Adobe Reader" will have the word "Troubleshooting" underneath the phrase "Adobe Reader and Help Support." Underneath "Troubleshooting" is "I can't open a PDF document."
• Follow the instructions on how to complete a general repair and installation of Adobe Acrobat Reader. To attempt the most basic PDF repair method, Open "Adobe Acrobat Reader" (select the program in your Start menu, which is on the bottom-left part of the screen), select "Help" from the gray tab menu at the top of Adobe Acrobat Reader, and click on "Repair Adobe Reader Installation." A meter should pop up indicating that your Adobe version is being checked for errors and is being linked back to the home Adobe website just in case you need to download a new update of the program. If you need to download an updated version of the program, another pop-up will appear on your screen asking you if you want to update Adobe. Click "Yes."
• Reopen the PDF file. It should now be readable. If not, then try the next set of directions.
• Also for more tips you may community of Adobe pros https://forums.adobe.com/message/6978758

Answer 2

This is a problem with the Microsoft Outlook clients. Mozilla insists on using a tool called LookUp that has the capability of decoding the file and extracting the right PDF you need. I recommend accessing the official add-on page to download and install it, then you should be able to decode the format.

Add-on page: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/addon/lookout/