Office 2000 gets its own virus protection

From...

by Lincoln Spector

(IDG) -- No protection is too much when it comes to fending off the myriad viruses that continue to attack Outlook and other Office applications.

That seems to be Central Command's philosophy. The company already claims that its AVX Professional antivirus program integrates more thoroughly with Windows than do its competitors. Now, thanks to a free upgrade, it integrates with Office 2000, as well.

In order to make it ready for anything, Central Command designed AVX (which stands for AntiVirus eXpert) Professional to be modular. As viruses debut to spread in new and frightening ways, like through e-mail or Word macros, Central Command can release a plug-in to take care of the problem. Like any antivirus program worth talking about, AVX has an easy update feature, but this one will download and install plug-ins as well as update definitions.

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AVX for Microsoft Office 2000 is not the first new module added to the base program, but it is the first to use Central Command's plug-in technology. Once installed, the plug-in lets AVX scan Word, Excel, and other Office files at the moment you open them, spotting any malicious code before the file is loaded and the damage done. If you're using Outlook or Outlook Express, the plug-in also scans each e-mail message for viruses before you open it.

More mail protection

In theory, you probably don't need the Office Plug-In's e-mail protection. Another AVX module, the Mail Monitor, should have already caught infected mail before you open it. The Mail Monitor, which integrates with Eudora and Netscape Messenger as well as Outlook and Outlook Express, checks your e-mail at the POP3 level as it comes in. Norton AntiVirus 2001 has a similar feature.

Other modules include Script Wall, which integrates with Windows Scripting Host and scans all scripts for suspicious instructions. And there's Virus Shield, which keeps an eye on every active process Windows is running.

Although that may sound a bit like overkill, viruses are expected to only get trickier and more dangerous. You find out for yourself the necessity of AVX's Office Plug-In free of charge, since Central Command offers a 30-day free trial at its Web site. The program costs $38.95 for a single user and is only available directly from Central Command.

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Central Command, Inc.
Microsoft Corp.
Symantec Corp.

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