Here’s What Happens When You Install the Top 10 Download.com Apps
Found on How-to Geek on Tuesday, 13 January 2015
For the purpose of this experiment, we’re going to just click through all regular installation screens with the default options using a fresh virtual machine. And we’re going to install ten applications from the most popular downloads list. And we’re going to assume the persona of a regular non-geek user.
Each time we ran through this experiment over the last few months, different software would end up being bundled in a rotation, but every single software that bundles itself ends up bundling the same culprits: browser hijackers that redirect your search engine, home page, and put extra ads everywhere.
Always test new software in a virtual machine. Sometimes you need the program only once to fix something anyway and don't want it permanently installed. You see what happens and can try everything without ruining your real machine; and if you really need it more often, consider isolating it: tools like Cameyo or ThinApp can bundle it. Also, don't blindly download the first result you find; get it from the website of the developers directly and avoid sites like download.com and SourceForge.