This is actually an impossible question to answer if you dowload anything off the internet you risk infecting your computer. There are several myths about viruses being sent through the IP numbers however I think V-shield prevents that if it is even true I have asked many of my friends and have gotten iradic answers. As a matter of fact if you dowload stuff off the internet regularly and you get a virus you will probably never figure out where you got it from. I hope this answered all your questions about how you get them if any of this is incorrect e-mail me. It is not my fault I have gotten most of this info from other websites. I know not all of them are correct.