How Can I Tell if Files on Linux are Harmful?

All operating systems give users a lot of access, including Windows. The key is to simply not download or install anything suspicious. If you can do that, you'll generally stay safe.

You really don't need to worry too much about this. Malware targeting Linux desktops is quite rare. Generally, you'll stay safe as long as you avoid downloading and executing binary files from sketchy sources. Stick to your distro's package manager or Flatpak for installing software. If you need something outside those channels, just be cautious and assess whether you trust the source.

What do you mean by harmful? Files are just files, after all. I'd recommend being careful about entering folders outside your `~/home` directory unless you know what you're doing.