What risk is there in downloading Apps?

[christa]

May seem like a stupid question, but what with all these free Apps available to my android;

What risk would I be taking by downloading them?

What harm can this possibly do to my phone?

Am I putting my personal stuff in my phone at risk of others getting access to it?

I saw a free audio download on Rick Steves travelling in Europe and am tempted to download it but would like to the possible pitfalls of doing so.

What should I be wary of?

Thanks guys.

[Balcony]

It's pretty obvious - you run the risk of also dowloading a virus. There are many sites out there and most no-one knows who they are etc.

The advice is always to only download from safe places, say, Apple's app store etc where you know you should be able to download safely. Read the magazines for info on safe sites etc. Some flashy app that takes your inside leg measurement and works out what clothes you need to impress so-and-so might sound intriguing, but it's oh so easy to add something nasty into the mix.