How safe is it to download free screensavers?

You have to be carefull when you download and try screensavers, especially free screensavers.

Some free screensavers come with unwanted third party software inside. This malware software can delivering adversisements to you, or it can be a special toolbar for internet explorer that promises to make your life easy, etc.

Guidelines for safe downloading:

• Download the screensavers from their original site
• Read the fine print about any additionally bundled software
• Check the website for statements or banners saying that this is totally clean download
  
• Always have an antivirus tool on your system
• If you are infected or you think you are infected by a virus, use as many as you can of the free online antivirus scanning tools at this site:
  http://www.24hsoftware.com/AntivirusStop

About the StarMessage screensaver:
Starmessage is perfectly safe to use. There is no third party software bundled with it.
Starmessage is not free. It has a price (although low) and does not rely on 3rd party malware or adware (like some other free screensavers) to make a profit.
Starmessage has a self-check module and if it gets infected by a virus, it stops working and shows an error message. So starmessage can reveal to you an underlying problem.