Hi everybody today we are going to discuss if it is safe to download free software. If you look around the web, you are going to find hundreds if not thousands of downloads that claim to be free. Only a small percentage of these down loads will actually be considered safe. Don’t get me wrong, there are tons of free downloads out there that are considered totally safe and many are extremely useful.
So how do I know if a download is for real? In many cases it will actually be hard to tell. As a general rule of thumb, if you have not heard of the company offering the software it is probably best to pass on the download until you have done further research. One-way to be sure a download is a good one is to check with your computer technician. I personally welcome phone calls from my customers when they are in doubt about specific software. We never charge for information on what to update or what to download questions from our existing customers.
One of the worst offenders of bad downloads is the Mal ware and virus removal category. At the same time, there are many great programs that are free and they are completely safe. You just have to know what you are looking for. Programs like Malwarebytes, AVG, Avast, Security Essentials, and Super Antispyware are great examples of useful software that is safe to download. There are lots of companies that try to mimic the real thing so be sure that when you do your search that you check the URL as well as the header to be sure you are going to the real site. A mistake here could lead to an infected machine. If you are not
sure, ask first or have a technician install it for you. This rule applies to both paid and free software. Be sure you are on the real site and not a fake.
Online games are a big pastime for many of us. The descriptions and graphics are often very alluring and often times we download games without checking where they are coming from. One of the most popular gaming sites is Pogo. I can assure you that games from reputable sites like this are safe to download and play. Be advised that under certain conditions, any online game can create problems with your machine. This is usually because of a component or program not being compatible with the game. If you have never heard of the company you are downloading the game from, do not download or play the game until you have checked and know it is safe.
Another place you need to watch is downloading utilities. Many of these programs will promise you the moon and once downloaded and installed, you will often have more problems then you started with. When it comes to utilities, use with caution. If you have specific computer issues, call a technician and get the problem fixed right.
Author: Joe Zelenak, Staff Writer
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