Garlic does eventually go bad in the fridge.
If you leave the garlic unpeeled and whole and not chopped up then the whole garlic will last for 1 to 3 weeks in the fridge before going bad.
If you have chopped up or minced garlic and you refrigerate the chopped or minced garlic then it will go bad within 1 day of refrigerating it.
It's best to just leave fresh garlic out at room temperature and use the garlic before it goes bad.
Garlic when left out at room temperature will last between 3 to 5 months before it goes bad.
So by refrigerating the garlic it actually makes the garlic go bad sooner.
Garlic is best left out at room temperature and not refrigerated.
You do not have to cure garlic before eating.
Garlic is edible directly out of the ground and there's no need to heat up, cook or cure garlic before you eat it.
You can take garlic right from the ground and eat it raw and you only need to cure garlic if you want to cure it as there's no requirement to cure garlic.
Curing garlic is a good idea though if you want to extend the shelf life of garlic before it goes bad.
Cured garlic lasts longer in the pantry or out on the counter etc than non cured garlic does.
If you are using garlic right away or within a week or so then there's no need to cure the garlic before using it to cook with or eating it raw.
I've eaten raw garlic before and raw garlic is good for your health as well.