Do Not Download Any Realtek Drivers

I just purchased a 2018 HP laptop and can barely hear movies/videos w/ the sound at 99. When I went to download a new Realtek driver to improve the sound, I found something very interesting with every single one out there (because Realtek doesn't offer driver updates on their business site). I am one of those OCD people who reads every line of the "Terms and Conditions" section before clicking "I Agree." On each and every driver was a section stating that this driver update contains viruses, malware, spyware, clickware, and cookie-copying. These features will allow third parties to view files & passwords, write to your computer, change code, and utilize your onboard camera & microphone. Once downloaded, these features will be imbedded and will remain even if you uninstall this driver.

So even the driver updates using the Realtek name, logo, and trademark are chock full of so much stuff that will jack your system (and maybe even your financial accounts). Realtek needs to man up and fix their crap. On the first search page alone, over 6 million downloads of these bogus drivers had been done. Now at least the "WHY" question has been answered about so many audio drivers having caused issues. Now the real question is WHO.

 

If a driver is WHQL certified (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WHQL_Testing) it should be safe so long as it is downloaded:

(a) directly from the PC manufacturer's website (www.hp.com)
(b) as part of Windows Update
(c) directly from the hardware vendor's website (Realtek), or
(d) using a reputable driver updating program (such as IOBit's Driver Booster, available for free in the downloads section of Major Geeks)

Sadly, there are a lot of fake driver updating programs out there that will infect your PC with malware. As a tech that deals with retail customers, this is one of the most common ways home and small business PCs get infected.

The "fine print" in almost every corporation's Terms and Conditions is written to get them off the hook for almost anything that could happen. In this case, it holds Realtek harmless if you try to install the driver from a rogue site or program infested with malware.