Downloading – Danger Signs
By Bob Rankin
Bob Rankin points out more danger signs for those looking for software on popular download sites.–PC Pitstop.
Downloading? Watch Out For These Danger Signs
A while ago, I wrote about the problem of foistware, software that sneaks in during a download, without your knowledge or explicit consent. I fingered CNET for their Six-Part Horror Story that downloaders must endure. Today we’ll look at two other popular download sites, to see if they are guilty of the same shenangigans…
Is It Still Safe to Download?
There are plenty of rogue sites on the Web, offering downloads that are either fake or malicious. But when we go looking for software downloads, we should be able to trust the big names like CNET, ZDNet, Adobe, Oracle and Tucows that have been around forever, right? Sadly, the answer is not always.
In my previous article DOWNLOAD ALERT: Foistware Warning, I wrote about the pervasive problem of foistware, and named names. If you’ve ever downloaded Adobe Reader or Java, you’ve experienced the problem of unwanted toolbars, sneaky downloads, and changes to your browser settings.
The problem is especially bad at CNET’s Download.com site, and they deserve to be shunned and scorned for it.
In today’s article, I’m looking at two other popular download sites, ZDNet and Tucows. Both have been around since the early days of the Internet, but at least one of them should be added to your “Do Not Visit” list. Let’s take a look at both, and see how it goes while trying to download CCleaner, a popular Windows utility program.
Downloading? Watch Out For These Danger Signs
Excerpt shared with permission from Bob Rankin.
