If you frequently download files from websites then you need to be more careful when downloading, you can face many bad situations when downloading a file.

For example, there are a lot of files out there that are fake, you could be downloading an application then it turns out it's just an archive with some wallpapers in it, or even worse, malicious files.

So before you surf the net check your Anti-virus solution is uptodate or not , else update it and do integrate it with the download appication so that if the download have malacious code binded will be removed.

Have a look at this A-Z on the security threats info in pdf from SOPHOS , i.e

To avoid the hassle of downloading something that you did not want, base your downloads from websites that have "comments" or "reviews by users", this way you'll know what you're downloading is what you want if all comments are positive.

Thankfully, there are users out there dedicated to find fake files and report them or leave their comments in the website to help other users.

Try to not download anything that sounds or looks "cool", do some research first, Google is your friend, just search for the name of the file you're downloading to find more information about it, after you're done researching and you still feel that you need the file, then go ahead and download it.

Be careful of misleading downloads, there are some websites that offer "mirrors" or "fast download links", most of the time they are real files and the poster is really offering more options for the user.

There are some applications like torrentz which uses p2p technolgy , means your are downloading as well sharing it at the same time, but now virus writers has actaully makes way to connect your machine to the world of botnets , where your machine will be controlled by a remote host.

so use of Download managers to download file is the best way to be more secure.

However, there are some people that take advantage of that and use misleading links, when you click them it might redirect you to a website that asks you for your credit card information or to pay a certain membership fee.

If you're willing to pay for what you want to download then go to the original source, for example, if you want to buy "Winamp", don't buy it from a third party website, go to their official website and buy it, this way you're making sure what you're downloading is real, and your money is not being wasted on fake or bad files.

Hope the above post help you to know whats actaully cooking over the internet, and some insight of the security sphere.