1) Since you are downloading Malware samples then I highly suggest to conduct via Virtual Machine (Like Virtualbox) however its fine on another computer,
2) Backup is important, conduct a system image by a third party program or built in from Windows alongside of your handy USB/External HDD + Cloud storage.
3) Add additional scanner like Hitman Pro or Zemana AM. Then addons will be Adguard + HTTPS Everywhere ( add also a backup browser)
As @jamescv7 says backups are really important. For a third party backup program i would suggest Aomei Backupper or Macrium Reflect both have a good free version.
If you do not have a portable HDD i suggest Aomei One Key backup solution. It will even help create a new partition for you.
Hi @karlos,
all the advice described above must be followed for better protection of your system
once you download malware you should install a virtual machine or use Shadow defender or Toolwiz time freeze and SandBoxie .
You should not forget enable UAC, can save your system
Hi, it is a good config, but I suggest you to install a software for backup
solution, such as Uranium Backup.
Then you can also install Auslogics Disk Defrag to improve the speed of the PC, then you can also install Collusion extension for your browser, which allows you to know which websites are tracking you.
At the end you can install Privazer.
Thanks for sharing it
I agree with the above suggestions but I would add that if you are using a light virtualization systems like Shadow Defender is important to know that creates a virtual copy of the same OS with the same files, so it is very important to disconnect internet if you test the malware to prevent leakage of sensitive data.
The best thing is to configure a virtual machine like VirtualBox or Vmware without sharing between Guest and Host.
Once installed the system, Guest additions and extensions (drivers ) care must be taken not to create links (network drives or otherwise) between the Host system and virtualized (Guest)