I downloaded a .rar file that was supposed to be about 300MB from a website, but the download stopped when it reached around 90MB, and then the file vanished from my downloads folder and my browser's downloads tab. I'm using a Samsung phone and can't find any trace of it. I'm concerned it might have been a disguised executable. Can someone help me?
1. Is there a reliable way to check for spyware or similar threats?
2. Am I in serious trouble?
3. How serious is the situation?
6 Answers
If you didn’t finish the download, the incomplete file would typically be removed automatically. So yeah, no need to feel too boned over this.
It's unlikely that just downloading a file would cause any harm. It sounds more like your browser has automatically deleted it for some reason. I've had similar issues with downloads stopping on my Android as well, so you might not have to worry too much about it.
Unless you actually opened or executed something, you should be fine. Android phones have protections in place that make it hard for malware to infect you just through a download.
It seems your title contradicts what you explained. If the download didn’t complete, then any temporary file that was created would have been deleted automatically.
Also, Android doesn’t natively support .rar files, so the risk of getting infected through a .rar on a Samsung is very low.
The file probably disappeared as a safety measure. If you were on Windows, you'd often need to bypass security settings before handling certain file types like .rar. Don't panic just yet!
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