If you are an active internet user searching to download various games, apps, or software online, you must be aware of Softonic. However, even after being mindful about the Softonic, one most common question people tend to ask online for their security purpose is “Is Softonic Safe and Legal to Use?”
Since Softonic is a free software downloader, this question is pretty obvious to keep your system protected from unwanted threats and malware that often gets downloaded along with some software online. To answer all your queries related to Softonic safe and legal use, let’s get into the detail of how this software works.
Contents
What is Softonic and How it Works?
Softonic is a Spanish website based in California to provide free apps, software, games, etc., for windows. You can either download free software from this website or can purchase the paid one from there. The website has gained immense popularity online in few years as it helps you download multiple files or software in just a few steps.
Softonic.com offers all the content for free without any malware or virus. Some of the most popular software categories available on this site are:
- Anti-Virus Software
- Multimedia Software
- Business & Productivity
- Browser Applications
- IT and Development
- Social Media Applications
Most of the software from these categories are available as demo software on the Softonic website. Some of the software are available as free to download, while others are available to use for a limited period, after which you have to purchase their paid version from the site. For paid version, the site will direct you to the company page, while open-source software can be directly downloaded from the website itself.
Apart from software and apps, the website also provides the latest app news and reviews for users so you can read the reviews of a particular software/app before downloading it.
The company was established in 1997 and currently has around 4 million downloads every single day. With such a great download count, company revenue is between 20 million dollars to 60 million dollars per year. But here is the most interesting fun fact about this. All the software or apps listed on Softonic are available to download for free, and you don’t have to pay a single penny to download any content from this website. Then how Softonic earns? Well, we will also explain it later in this article.
Is Softonic Safe and Legal to Use?
Talking about safety and legitimacy, Softonic is a renowned old website that is entirely safe and legal. But still, people often complain that after downloading software from Softonic, their PC is installed with some malware or virus. Now, if Softonic is safe and legal, then why is this happening? Let us explain this in simple terms.
Softonic being a free software downloader, allows you to download various open-source software for free. In this way, Softonic isn’t earning any money. To earn revenue, Softonic installs extra software during the installation of a particular software you want to download & install in your system.
So basically, they cover the installation software with another software/installer that asks the user to install a few other software, including adware or browser extensions.
Now when the user downloads the software, he/she does not always pay attention to what is being installed with that software they want. In this way, they also permit another installer, which might contain malware or adware that results in data loss or security threats.
So, in simple words, Softonic is 100% legal and doesn’t install any kind of malware or virus in the system, but we cannot say the same thing for the applications that comes with the Softonic installer as they are primarily responsible for the installation of adware or malware in your system.
How can you protect your system from adware/malware while installing software from Softonic?
To install any app or software from Softonic safely on your device, you must take care of the following things:
- Ensure that you don’t download any software or app using the Softonic downloader. Uncheck all the boxes where it asks for using Software downloader to download the app and go for direct download.
- To scan the downloads, use anti-virus after downloading the software from the website.
- Softonic website also contains multiple ads. You can use adblocker to block all the ads and popups for seamless download.
- Take a backup of all your files and store it in a separate hard disk before downloading any new software from the website, so in case if you lost any data, you already have a backup to restore.
- Always pay attention to what is downloading and installing with the software you wish to install.
Softonic Pros
- Large variety of software available on the site
- You can easily download any software in just a few steps.
- Best & reliable software to download open-source software or apps
- Don’t charge any fees or commission
- Allow you to purchase license versions of popular windows software and apps.
- Also has app reviews for user’s reference
- All the content available on the site are free from malware and viruses.
- Trusted by Google as a Legal Site
Softonic Cons
- Many software listed on the site doesn’t available in their updated version.
- Too many ads on the site distract users from downloading the relevant content.
- Softonic installer lets users install some potentially harmful software or adware, resulting in security threats and data loss.
- Its app or web permissions are not set correctly and might take control of the device.
FAQs
Is Softonic a free platform?
Yes, it is hands down one of the best pieces of news that Softonic is indeed a safe and legal platform. This means that you won’t have to pay a dime to watch the reviews, download or install the applications that you want or even get things sorted the way you want them to. Typically, we’d recommend you use this platform. It is a registered company and platform, so you need not worry about its reliability and authenticity.
What kind of reviews can I find on Softonic?
Since Softonic deals with different kinds of apps and website news and developments, it is a given that it deals with Android and iOS applications. You can get in-depth and elaborate reviews of multiple applications without any compromise. All you have to do is be mindful of the articles and the free downloads that come as accessories too.
Are the apks on Softonic safe?
Yes, if you are downloading third-party applications from Softonic, be assured that all their apks and the information is safe to consume. You won’t have to worry about the quality of the content whatsoever. We’d just highly recommend that you focus on the features of the individual apps before installing them.
Conclusion
So, after intensely reviewing its positive and negative aspects, we can say that Softonic is safe and legal to use if you take care of the above-mentioned steps for the secure download.
The site is half protected and half not, as its installer can cause several security threats if you will not pay attention to the software installing in your system. So, before permitting any software, check all the details, take backup, and be cautious. For any other software-related queries or updates, stay tuned with us or write us in the comments sections!
