Flash player blocked on Firefox over security risk
Adobe Systems issues alert over security flaw
Mozillahas "temporarily"blocked the Flash multimedia player on its Firefox browser following a security alert from Flash'smaker,Adobe Systems.
The Flash Player Plugin was added to the list of Firefox'sblocked add-onsMonday and Mozilla followed up with a Twitter post Tuesday morning.
BIG NEWS!! All versions of Flash are blocked by default in Firefox as of now. https://t.co/4SjVoqKPrR #tech #infosec pic.twitter.com/VRws3L0CBW
—@MarkSchmidty
We are committed to protecting our users from security risks. That's whyfollowing an Adobe alertwe temporarily blocked #Flash in Firefox.
—@firefox
The move to block Flash comes after security weaknesses in the browseradd-on was revealed in documents stolen from the Italian security company Hacking Team.
One of Hacking Team's tools stolen in the hack isaimed at taking advantage of a previously unknown bug in Flash to hijack targeted computers.
While Adobe Systems said last week that it would patch the security flaw, the Firefox block includes even the most recent version of the plugin.
Alex Stamos, the new head of security at Facebook, called for the end of the animation software in a tweeton Sunday.
It is time for Adobe to announce the end-of-life date for Flash and to ask the browsers to set killbits on the same day.
—@alexstamos
Elsewhere on Twitter, many pointed out thatthe iPhonewas released withoutFlash support and thatSteve Jobs wrote that "Flash falls short" for browsers in the mobile era.
Fun fact: many smart people originally thought it was a huge problem that iPhone did not support Flash.
—@mikko
Facebook now wants Flash dead. ElOhEl. Remember how Google, Microsoft and the herd ganged up on Apple to promote Flash against surging iOS?
—@counternotions
We all laughed at Steve Jobs when he refused to enable Flash on iOS devices, now thr are tutorials on how to Disable flash on your browsers
—@GabbbarSingh
It's taken 8 years to go from "OMG iPhone doesn't support flash" to "uninstall flash from every single device you own".
—@yaakov_h
Plugins like Adobe Flash can be disabled or uninstalled in the "add-ons" orpluginssettings of your browser.