date modified of file is earlier than date created?

Question

How come if i check some files in my usb, the date modified is earlier than the date created? Like for example: date created: Jan 5 2009. date modified: March 10 2008. Why is it like this?

Answer 1

May be the computer on which the files were modified had incorrect date. Nothing much to worry. Also, when files are copied or moved from one disk or partition to another, their modified date remains un touched (usually a past date) but created date is set to present time.

Answer 2

You could've used your USB drive on computers with different time/date settings. It had to compensate or provide a best-effort guess. Either hte date created is wrong because the clock was set ahead or the date modified is wrong because the clock was set behind. So windows will just use whatever the time/date of the computer is. It doesn't know what the time (according to the physical world) really is. Unless it's hooked upto a GPS or atomic clock of some kind, but then that's just too much intelligence and adding complexity to the problem. So they kept it simple: whatever time/date is read on the machine is used for creation/modify/etc. date/times.

Answer 3

time for some new reading glasses

Answer 4

make sure your computer is NOT infected with spyware..