At 07:04 AM 7/30/99 , Sherry Wilkins wrote:
>My subscription to download the latest virus MacAffee updates has expired but it says I
>can still download the free .dat files. What are they and do they help protect my
>computer from viruses? Is it a waste of my time to download them?


The reason for the regular updates is to protect against any new virii
that appear between each update, to add new methods of detecting
existing virii and new methods of removing virii.   If you have an older
version of McAfee when a new virus moves about, it will not detect
the virus giving you a false sense of security and your computer
will be very vulnerable.

The dat files are the reference library for your anti-virus software.  They
contain the information about each virus that the software uses to detect
and clean your system.

Your anti-virus software, no matter the brand, is only effective if you
continually update it.

                 Bob Wright
        The NOSPIN Group, Inc
http://nospin.com - http://nospin.org

                         PCSOFT's List Owner's:
                      Bob Wright<[log in to unmask]>
                       Drew Dunn<[log in to unmask]>