linux isnt immune to viruses even though its not as bad as windows
what should i do to be safe if i have a safe browser, vm, but pirate and download risky things? i know its a vm but i still dont want to have to delete everything in the vm if something happens. also the malware doesnt go to the router and spread rigt???
Mirror, keep a clean copy of your setup offline. Make periodic backups. If you ever get into an unpleasant state, nuke it and go back to one you like better.