be careful - but how??

[swedeheart]

I like to use online image editors such as Pixlr, Sumo and Aviary for instance and there's never been a problem. But a while back I started getting warnings when initiating the process of saving an edited image to My Pictures. The warnings are in Swedish and I'm not sure how to translate them as I know nothing about computers, but it's something along the lines of "This may contain a program that may be run, or malware. Be careful when you open it" - something like that. As a result, I haven't dared to save anything I've been editing lately... What's it all about?? Those online editors seem very respectable to me. And how does one go about being careful when opening a picture???

I have Vista, anti-virus and Windows' firewall.

[Huderon]

It is just a warning.

Some time back there was a problem with the MS picture viewer which allowed potential malware to run when you looked at a picture. That has since been fixed so you should be OK there. On XP (and for all I know on Vista as well) you can create files with two extensions - mypicture.jpg.exe for example. When you went to look in your pictures/documents folder it would only show as a picture file (.jpg) but when your attempted to open it, it wouldn't open as a picture but the program (because that's what it is) would run and install a virus or some piece of malware on your computer.

If you have used the sites for some time without problems, the chances are that they are still safe to use. If you are worried about pictures you download from them, download them into a folder reserved for that purpose and scan them with your virus checker and malware checker before opening them. That way you should be safe.

[swedeheart]

Thanks a lot Huderon:) Would it also be safe to

-save the edited picture
-NOT scan it with virus and malware checker ...
-but also not look at it in the Windows Gallery but just upload it to another site, using that other site's uploading feature?

[swedeheart]

...like for instance uploading it to my Photobucket account, and then look at it and handle it and post it* from there?

*(i.e. the link leading to it)

[Huderon]

It should be fine, and the sites you upload it to will almost certainly do a check for viruses and malware anyway. Hotmail. Yahoo mail and (I think) Google mail all check any attachments yo put on emails when you are using your browser to post, so I'd be surprised if Photobucket didn't.

[swedeheart]

That's good. Thanks again!