Caution On Open Source Download Pages in Search Results

Caution On Open Source Download Pages in Search Results

Google Instant has a handy keyboard shortcut that lets you quickly open the first result in searches by simply hitting the Enter key, but since Google highlights sponsored results at the top of their search results list, those who are overly trigger-happy can end up being burned with a bum open source download instead of a legitimate result.

This has happened to some people who were searching for software in this way and ended up with crapware-laden versions of legitimate open source software. While careful users may notice that they've been dumped to an unofficial distributor, many others are too trusting of Google's first result. The first sponsored result is often an ad that points to the same page as the real first result, as is the case for Chrome and many other open source software. However, it pays to keep your eyes open and make sure you are in fact heading to an official download page when clicking on a result from search.

Photo source dullhunk


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