OTShot_leftover_2.jpg' alt='Uninstall Flash Player For Other Browsers For Ipad' title='Uninstall Flash Player For Other Browsers For Ipad' />What Is Adobe Flash, and How Can You Get Rid of ItAdobeThis story is being featured as part of our Yahoo Best of 2. It was originally published on July 1. Google and Mozilla each announced this week that their Web browsers will be dropping default support for Adobe Flash, citing the plug in softwares newly discovered vulnerabilities to cyberattacks. These moves came only a few days after Facebooks chief of security called for Adobe to set an end of life date for the oft exploited 2. Even if you dont exactly know what Adobe Flash is, this is important news. Adobe-Flash-Player-11.jpg' alt='Uninstall Flash Player For Other Browsers For Ipad' title='Uninstall Flash Player For Other Browsers For Ipad' />Adobe Flash, though once essential for websites with interactive elements or video, is no longer necessary in most cases, as Web and app developers have moved on to. Over time, youve probably installed a lot of software in Windows. However, not all of it is necessary. Here are several outdated or useless tools you can remove. WiseFixer is a professional and advanced system optimizer tool to help users easily and conveniently fix system errors,clean registry,optimize system to speed up PC. Whether you know it or not, odds are pretty high that Adobe Flash is on your computer right now, possibly putting your system and your personal information at risk. Dont panic. Take a deep breath and read our Adobe Flash security threat guide. Well help you figure out why it might be best to banish Flash from your life, just like Google, Mozilla, and Facebook want you to do. And well tell you how to go about doing exactly that. So what is Flash, exactlyAdobe Flash is a software platform that runs video, animation, and games inside of Web pages. Flash was born at the dawn of the Web in 1. Web video, especially after a little startup called You. Tube began using it in 2. But now its largely obsolete, as most Web sites and apps use different technologies for the same purpose. Adobe is changing the world through digital experiences. We help our customers create, deliver and optimize content and applications. Devices Supporting iOS 11. OS 11 will be available for launch on September 19, when you can update your iPhone and iPad with the new software. Unfortunately, not. Why is Flash a problem The very thing that made Flash so popular its ability to run complex scripts from websites you visit can also be used for malicious purposes. Computer scripts written in Flash can directly access the memory on your computer, which is just inviting attacks, or exploits, says Chase Cunningham, a cyberthreat expert at security company Fire. Host. Anytime a site is able to access your computers memory, its able to make changes on the local machine itself your PC. Thats when you run into exploits. Flash has long been one of the biggest attack methods of choice for cybercrooks and spying governments, as security vulnerabilities turn up on an almost daily basis. Just this month, Adobe put out security alerts and fixes for 3. Flash Player. Last week, it came out that a company called Hacking Team had been using previously unknown flaws in Flash to create spyware that it sold to oppressive governments in countries such as Sudan and Saudi Arabia. Flash also uses up a lot of computing resources and can bog systems down. We know firsthand that Flash is the number one reason Macs crash, wrote Steve Jobs in an Apple blog post from April 2. Do I have Flash on my computer You probably do especially if you are using a Windows PC, rely on an older browser, or were prompted by a Web site to install it. In October 2. Apple announced that it would no longer install Flash Player on its computers including its Safari Web browser although users could install it on their own if they wanted to. BBCThe latest version of Mozilla Firefox launched with a block for Flash Player though after an update Tuesday by Adobe, Mozilla has re enabled use of the plugin in its browser. Googles Chrome browser comes with Flash, but it is disabled by default. However, you may have installed or enabled Flash Player if a website prompted you to. I would say probably 9. Flash running on them, said Cunningham. You can visit this page on Adobes website to see if the computer youre using has Flash installed. What about my phone Chances are good that Flash is not on your smartphone or tablet. Apple completely banned Flash from its mobile devices running the i. OS operating system, such as the i. Phone, i. Pad, and Apple Watch. Apples rejection of Flash helped spur Web and software developers to use other technologies for delivering video or animating games. Googles Android mobile software briefly supported Flash, but it was generally choppy and used up more battery than other formats. In 2. 01. 2, Adobe dropped support for Android, and Flash has been absent since Android 4. Jelly Bean, which came out that same year. Adobe also dropped support for Black. Berry and Windows Phone. If you have an i. Phone, or any other smartphone bought in the past couple of years, you dont have Flash. Story Continues. Dont I need it on my computer Generally not. Most websites have switched over to another video format, called HTML 5. Its the default on both You. Tube and Vimeo, for example. So unless you know you need Flash for a specific site, its best to uninstall it or block it. How do I get rid of this nasty thing For Internet Explorer, follow Microsofts instructions for how to turn off or remove add ons. Chrome. For Chrome, see Googles instructions specifically for disabling Flash Player. If you have Safari on a Mac, follow Adobes own instructions for removing it. For Firefox, type about addons into the browsers address bar, click Plugins on the left side of the page, scroll down to Shockwave Flash, then click the dropdown menu on the right and select Never Activate. With Firefox, you can also install a Web browser extension called No. Script, which blocks not only Flash but also other scripts that attackers can exploit, such as Java. Script. Once Flash is gone, will older videos still play on my computer If a website requires Flash to display videos or animation, you will need to install Flash to watch it. Theres no way around that. Its typical for Flash based sites to display alerts when they detect that Flash is not installed. If you see this and you absolutely must view that video we recommend downloading and installing Flash directly from Adobe. Firefox. Luckily all the popular Web browsers allow you to temporarily install or enable Flash for only the times you happen to need it. So if youve installed Flash to view a website many U. S government sites use it, for example, its probably a good idea to disable it as soon as you are done there. So thats everything you need to know about the risks and rewards of the Flash dance. Considering all the above, conventional wisdom dictates that living Flash free is probably worth trying. After all, if you didnt know what Adobe Flash was before reading this article, theres a good chance you wont miss it once its gone. UPDATE Adobe has released a new version of Flash that Mozilla Firefox does not block by default. Hyperterminal Windows 10 on this page. Sean Captain is a freelance tech and science writer based in New York City. Follow him on twitter seancaptain or send tips to seantechseancaptain.