Downloading? Watch Out For These Danger Signs - Comments Page 3

Good info Bob and thanks for being honest with your readers. I guess its like Obamacare - You have to download it to find out whats in it. Your article should be shared with all to wake up the public about this shameful conduct. Cnet and the rest are no better than the spammers and spammers and should be rewarded with hefty fines and prison time.

You recommended CCleaner in a previous article with no reference to the extenuating repercussions. I'm leery about your investigation of the possible problems aftermath but do appreciate your "after the fact" findings.

EDITOR'S NOTE: I wasn't criticizing CCleaner. It's a fine program, and you can download it directly from other sites. I was just using it as an example of one popular program that can be downloaded.

I use MajorGeeks for free software downloads, whenever possible... and you can find nearly everything worth having, there.

I have used MajorGeeks.com for downloads for several years and have yet to be unpleasantly surprised by foistware. In fact, MajorGeeks warns you when an available program contains "extras;" this is the only site I've found that does this.

By just being lazy, I noticed last week that CNET has even gone further downhill. When I clicked on the 'Direct download' link, it offered the same 907KB stub installer that the big green download button offered. The software was supposed to be a 2.36MB download. I found it elsewhere.

ERROR CORRECTED: in my post above, I referred to "iolo" - that is a serious error, as iolo is an above-the-board company. The name I meant to write, is "iobit" Error regretted.

Worst free download I ever encountered was called Windows 8.1. From Microsoft. I think it is only offered to Win8 users, and it may be just the ticket for touch screen mobile devices, but I am using a desktop machine with a keyboard and mouse. Windows 8.0 was enough of a leap of faith (from XP). The thing about 8.1 that hit me below the belt was a periodic subscription fee to play solitaire! I only had the system on my machine for a day so I don't know everything worth hating about it, but it seems to want money every time you click something.

EDITOR'S NOTE: There's no fee to play Windows Solitaire. It's possible you downloaded a paid app from another source, or visited a website with paid games?

I have Revo Uninstaller on my computer. It's a great help when I'm finished downloading an update I can check Revo and uninstall all those tool bars. I also agree that filehippo.com is much safer.

Dear Bob,
The safest and best place for downloads for me is SOFTPEDIA. To know about many similar software I go to ALTERNATIVETO. Please write something about these good places.
Though you don't know me but you are my very close friend. I have come know many things from you.
Thanks Pal.

http://ninite.com
There are over 90 programs that you can download with out any extra tool-bars or crap ware, but is does not have ccleaner

It is great if it has what you need

I like CCleaner, but in November, it said a new update was available, and while downloading (via the update link that opened up their website), I discovered I'd been switched to filehippo (I always download directly from piriform, which owns CCleaner). Worse, I downloaded a download generator that AVAST said was Malware. It took a while to clean that up. A few weeks ago, another CCleaner update was available, and again I somehow was diverted (via clicking on the big DOWNLOAD window in the middle of the Piriform homepage) to filehippo. This time, I immediately returned to Piriform and clicked on their Downloads tab and was able to choose between piriform and filehippo (I chose Piriform). I've periodically googled to see if anyone else was unwillingly diverted doing a CCleaner download - I wonder if there's some some malware in the one webpage that people are most likely to click to get their download. Or if maybe >>I

Here's a vote for Softpedia. If you pick the link on the software page where is states "or add to download basket" you'll miss the other bogus download links. That link is many times right above the software description on the left side?

Due to the many sites that attempt to install foistware, I have, for many years, been going to FileHippo and MajorGeeks as my go-to places for my downloads.

I have not been to CNET for many years nor do I plan to return in the near or far future.

Thank you once again for a very insightful article.
Keep up the good work.

Thanks to all who suggested Major Geeks as a good download site. I have gone there before but it was not first on my list.

I just went there and read one of the top news articles named 'MajorGeeks tops list of safe Software Download Sites'. Great read and they are now at the top of my list when I'm looking for download files.

Just as a side note, I bought a fake rolex from a night market in Hong Kong 20 years ago. It cost me 20$HK (about £8UK) and still works and looks good even now. I wear it possibly a dozen times a year when I dress up (I've got clocks on my phone, car, TV, bedside clock, oven, etc.) and keeps time very well - .if you're going to tell me that a real rolex keeps time much better - do I care that I might lose or gain several seconds per day? No. As to "costing rolex their profit"? No. If I had the money to buy a rolex I'd think it pretty, but overpriced, but as I don't have the cash in the first place it's a moot question.

I too have used FileHippo for years and admired it. You could even download "older" versions, if the new was not what you wanted.

Now downloads come with a zip utility to open downloads but then also installs the zip program and misc. other toolbars.

Not good.

I used to download at Cnet but then I noticed all the extras they had pre-checked and if you did not closely scan every screen, you usually ended up downloading browsers, toolbars and some programs you did not want. Last October I switched over to ninite and SO FAR--I have had good luck with them. Due to what all I have read in this article I now have bookmarked MajorGeeks and FileHippo. So thanks to everyone who mentioned these websites in their comments.
It is too bad that various sites/companies (not just the download sites) have gotten on what I call the 'GREED TRAIN'. But that is what it all boils down to, just ways for them to make money. The only real cost to them is creating an ad or a link to an ad/landing page and posting it on their websites. Which is not all that time consuming but then it runs for 24/7--FOREVER. Due to the huge number of people who use the I-net everyday, these companies only need a very low number of visitors to click through and view or purchase a product via their link(s) in order to make really high income(s).

The Windows 7 Drivers download ad on this page caused me lots of problems. Extremely long re-starts, "invisible" icons, repeated characters though key not held, locking-up of word processing, installation of foist ware, etc.
I uninstalled all of this mess and did a re-start. Now everything is fine. Oh...and Dell says that I can get **free* drivers on their website. And Dumb Me paid $29.95 for this Slimware Utilities package. Phooey.

Not sure if anyone's mentioned, but a great little app for keeping these things in "check" is called Unchecky --- if you are in danger of downloading an app other than the one intended, it pops up a warning and allows you to block.

You know, it's one thing for low profile player to foist unasked for software onto our machines, but it is another for a high profile player like CBS to do so. I think Sony is still reeling from the rootkits it installed without invitation (not to mention flawed hardware.) That has weakened its position in the marketplace.

Personally, I am considering boycotting CBS and particularly its advertisers because of its surreptitious actions.

It's not lost on me that the the "Terms and Condition" that have been written by attorneys and that are often a half day's read are generally completely ignored by users. It's similar to the fast rolling credits after movies on TV, they are perfunctory, no one is really expected to read them, but they have to show them. So, we click on "Accept" not really knowing whether we have just agreed to give up our first born males or the contents of our 401k's.

When the big players start acting like the shady shadow dwellers it's up to us to take some action. I think boycotting CBS (except CSI, for personal reasons) is a step I should take, particularly because there are alternatives.

The Internet allows those of us with similar opinions to form a critical mass. Right now only I am engaging in a boycott. I hope others join.

JAF