You Can Never Have Too Much Virus Protection

Editors share perspectives from vendors about products, services, technologies, and industry directions.

I was in line at the grocery store , and I overheard a conversation that made my hair stand on end. A customer was telling the clerk that his PC had been crippled by a virus attack. The customer said something like, "I have antivirus software, but I haven't updated it in a couple of years."

What reminded me of this incident was a conversation I had with Angelica Micallef Trigona of GFI Software (http://www.gfi.com). Angelica told me that although systems administrators are aware that they need virus protection, some IT pros are lulled into a false sense of security by their antivirus solution. Exploring GFI's Web site, I found a white paper that addresses the point Angelica was making, "Why one virus engine is not enough" (http://www.gfi.com/whitepapers/why-one-virus-engine-is-not-enough.pdf), and I found a tool (http://www.gfi.com/emailsecuritytest) that lets you perform a free vulnerability test on your email security. After speaking with Angelica and reading the white paper, I realized that although I was feeling smug about that customer's naiveté, we all need to stay informed about ever-changing virus threats and make sure we're protected from them.

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