hyper links in out look do not work.

every email message that i get with a hyper link I get the error message "general failure" then it gives the link address and it says "the system cannot find the file specified" I never had the problem before and don't know what happened to change the setting. i have tried unclicking the microsoft option for disabling links phishing emails . still doesn't work. i have scoured the web and did not find anything that would fix the problem. Here is my set up
Windows xp pro sp 3
outlook 2007
firefox 3.5.8


any ideas oh wise ones?