Not all index of results are illegal. Some are completely legitimate and safe. For example:
How to spot a legitimate index:
In real-time strategy games, we usually talk about "popularity" or "loyalty." In Stronghold Crusader, the Index is your Overall Popularity Rating. It is a numerical value (usually ranging from -100 to 100) that dictates how much your peasant population likes you at this very moment.
However, the Index is not just a score. It is a dynamic economic accelerator.
Simply put: The Index is the throttle of your economy.
The "cheese" strategy of the game: 4 Apple Orchards + 2 Hunts + 1 Dairy + 1 Wheat Farm/Bakery. Feed your people double rations of all four food types. You will hit +70 Index. Drop taxes to "Oppressive" (-16). You net +54 Index. You will have infinite gold and infinite workers. It’s broken, but it works.
The true mastery of Stronghold Crusader lies in the Economic Loop.
If this loop breaks, you lose.
For example: You build 20 crossbowmen. The upkeep drains your gold. You raise taxes to "High" to compensate. The Index drops to -10. Peasants leave. Now your Iron mines have no workers. Now you can't make more crossbows. The enemy attacks. You lose.
The fix: Before raising taxes, build a dungeon. Capture some enemy slaves. Use the +10 Fear bonus to offset the -8 Tax penalty. Now you have your gold and your workers.
If you download copyrighted material over an unencrypted HTTP connection (common for index of sites), your IP address is visible. Copyright trolls monitor such directories and send DMCA notices to ISPs, who may throttle your connection or terminate your service after repeated violations.