26 Mar How to Update Adobe Flash Player on a Mac

Using Adobe Flash Player Install Manager. By far the most effective and cleanest way to remove Flash Player is by making use of the Installation Manager. This simple process will ensure all relevant Flash Player files are removed. Locate Adobe Flash Player Install Manager on your Mac. Oct 13, 2020 If you have a Mac you are running macOS. Flash Player is going away for all systems as you note, at the end of the year. There has been 3 years to re-make or recreate necessary content. Harman will offer software assistance, including continuing support for a limited time for Flash Player, for Mac and Windows. Only get Flash from Adobe's site. Those sites popping up those messages will likely install Flash plus adware, malware, whatever with it. As for needing it, it depends upon the site. I think many are moving on from Flash based media delivery. Browsers and operating systems that support Flash Player continue to decrease so Adobe strongly recommends immediately uninstalling Flash Player. Apple Safari version 14, released for macOS in September 2020, no longer loads Flash Player or runs Flash content. Please visit Apple’s Safari support for more information.

March 26, 2018

Adobe Flash Player is a free software plug-in used by web browsers to view multimedia, execute rich Internet applications, and stream video on your Mac.

Adobe Flash Player is the most popular multimedia player plug-in available. However, recently there have been security concerns which have threatened its popularity as users seek safer alternative solutions. Opera, Firefox, and Chrome contain built-in versions of Flash running in sandbox mode. This method is safer than running Flash as a plugin. However, currently the reality is that you still may need the Adobe Flash Player on your Mac because many websites will not work well if you uninstall it. Here I’ll show you how to install Adobe Flash Player and how to set it up correctly.

How to install Adobe Flash Player on your Mac.

1. Go to http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/ to download the Adobe Flash Player installer.

2. By default, the installer package will be downloaded to your “Downloads” folder.

3. Select the file on your Mac and double click to install it.

4. Select “Allow Adobe to install updates (recommended)” and click “DONE” to complete the installation.

If you installed Adobe Flash Player, but still cannot view online videos on certain websites, you need to check Adobe Flash Player on your browsers.

How to set up Adobe Flash Player on various browsers.

Safari

1. Launch Safari and go to the Apple menu bar and click Preferences.

2. Select the Websites tab and select On for “When visiting other websites.”

3. Refresh the browser tab, or restart the browser.

Google Chrome

1. Launch Chrome and type chrome://settings/content in the address field.

2. Select “Ask first (recommended)” and turn it on.

3. Refresh the browser tab or restart the browser.

Opera

1. Launch Opera and go to the Apple menu bar and click Preferences.

2. Select the Websites tab and then select “Allow sites to run Flash”

3. Refresh the browser tab or restart the browser.

Firefox

1. Launch Firefox and go to the Apple menu bar and click Tools – Add-ons.

2. Click the Plugins tab and turn the “Shockwave Flash” to “Always Activate.”

Note: (SWF (Shock Wave Flash) is a special format created by Macromedia, which has been acquired by Adobe. It is widely used in web design, animation production and other fields.)

For enhancing the user experience and security, Adobe is always trying to improve Adobe Flash Player. However, sometimes when you view a website, a Flash Player upgrade popup appears. Most people would click the “update” button to update their Flash Player, but this could be a false popup used by hackers to compromise your Mac. This is a method hackers use to trick you into downloading adware and malware through a false popup.

Be careful and don’t trust any automatic updates of Adobe Flash Player. Here I will tell you how to install real Flash Player updates and set it up.

How to update Flash Player on Mac safely

1. Go to the Apple menu bar and select System Preferences.

2. Select Flash Player.

3. Select the Updates tab and select “Allow Adobe to install updates (recommended)”. (Note: The Flash plug-in is officially updated 1~2 times a month, so selecting this option avoids frequent update.)

4. You may now notice that the Flash Update settings now shows NPAPI and PPAPI plugins. Let me explain them.

NPAPI – used by Safari, Firefox

PPAPI – used by Chromium, Opera and Chrome (Chrome’s implementation is built in)

5. Click Check Now to confirm that you currently have the latest version installed.

If you had clicked a false popup and downloaded adware, don’t worry, the Apple App Store has many antivirus apps, such as Trend Micro’s Antivirus One, that you can use to do a free scan.

Follow the steps below in case you downloaded a fake Adobe Flash Player.

1. When you first install Antivirus One, click “Pattern Update” to make sure your virus pattern is up to date. We suggest you update the virus pattern every day.

2. After the first installation, we highly suggest you perform a full scan of your Mac to check all files for possible infections. The Full scan will take more than one hour.

3. If you still find adware and a full scan has not found any viruses, we recommend you use Adware Cleaner. You can access Adware Cleaner in the left panel of the Antivirus One window.

How to uninstall Adobe Flash Player

Adobe Flash Player for the Mac is a plug-in, not a Mac OS X application. When you try to uninstall Adobe Flash Player from your Mac, you might find that this plug-in is not so easy to delete. For example, you might see this message:

Cannot find Adobe Flash Player in your Applications folder.

In this case, Adobe Flash Player could not be removed and no reason was given. The following steps show how to uninstall Adobe Flash Player with no remaining parts.

1. Go to the /Applications/Utilities/ folder on your Mac and double-click the Adobe Flash Player Install Manager app.

2. Click Uninstall to begin the process.

3. Type the password and click Install Helper.

4. If your browser is running, the following window will appear. Select “Force Close All” to continue.

5. After the uninstaller removes the Adobe Flash software from your Mac, click Done.

Viruses are getting smarter these days. One of the common tactics by which malicious software infects computers is through phishing. The attacker makes a bogus link seem legitimate, but it will redirect you to a different page where you will get malicious software installed on your system.

Mac users think that macOS is invincible and does not get infected by malware or viruses. However, recent attacks prove that macOS is just as vulnerable to malicious software as any other operating system. There are even viruses that were designed to target Macs and other Apple devices.

Recently, Mac users reported several cases of getting the Adobe Flash Player virus on Mac. When they go to certain websites, Adobe Flash Player keeps asking to update on Mac even though the system is updated.

What Is the ‘Flash Player Update REQUIRED’ Virus on Mac?

The Adobe Flash Player is a commonly used program that is trusted by most users. Websites use this software to deliver content to the readers, so it is common to see a notification saying that the website needs Flash Player for the page to load.

Pro Tip: Scan your Mac for performance issues, junk files, harmful apps, and security threats
that can cause system issues or slow performance.

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The Adobe Flash Player virus on Mac takes advantage of this and prompts web visitors of specific websites to update their Flash Player software. This trickery is less obvious compared to asking to install it on their computer because users are now wary of installing software from unknown sources.

Here are some versions of the update notification:

• Update to the latest version of Flash Player. Your current Adobe Flash Player version is out of date.
• WARNING! Your Flash Player is out of date. Please install update to continue.
• “Adobe Flash Player” is out of date.
  To continue using “Adobe Flash Player”, download an updated version.

Once you click the link on the notification or the Update button, a DMG file gets downloaded on your computer. Installing that “update” allows the virus to get into your system.

What Happens When You Get the Adobe Flash Player Virus on Mac?

Impersonating Adobe Flash Player is only one of the ways through which attackers infiltrate your system. The type of virus embedded in the downloaded “update” and the effects of the virus on your system depend on the attacker.

Some attackers embed a Trojan virus to steal data or create a backdoor to your system. Others use ransomware to take your personal data and computer hostage and demand payment for their release.

But according to user reports, the most common consequences of the Adobe Flash Player virus on Mac are performance issues. Users noted that there is obvious sluggishness after installing the update and some apps crash or hang for no apparent reason.

This might be because crypto-mining malware has infected the system through the installed “Adobe Flash Player update.” Crypto miners eat up a huge chunk of your computer’s resources, causing your processes to slow down or crash even though you’re not doing anything resource-heavy.

Another common malware type disguised by the Adobe Flash Player virus is adware. You’ll notice that after downloading and installing the “update,” irrelevant and pesky ads start to pop up on your screen all of a sudden. These ads can’t be blocked by ad blockers and are so invasive that they don’t disappear even when you close the browser.

Worse, some ads are not limited to the browser. Some start appearing on apps and other programs running on the infected computer. Restarting the app and the computer doesn’t work. You need to get rid of the adware completely for these ads to disappear.

However, getting rid of the Adobe Flash Player virus on Mac is easier said than done. It is one of the most annoying viruses today because it is so persistent and hard to remove. So if you’re one of those who got tricked by the Adobe Flash Player virus on Mac, follow our virus removal guide below.

How to Remove “Flash Player Update REQUIRED” Virus on Mac

Here’s a thing: clicking the Cancel or Later button will not get rid of the Adobe Flash Player update prompt on Mac. It will keep on asking you to download the update and install it on your computer. If you’ve just come across the website with this notification, you can simply close the website and move on.

But if you went to that website for a reason (to watch a video, read news, or browse images), you’ll probably be tempted to update your Flash Player just to get access to the content that you need, not knowing that you’re installing a virus instead.

To totally get rid of the Adobe Flash Player virus on Mac, try the steps below.

Step 1: Close the Browser.

The moment you notice that something fishy is going on, close Safari or the browser you are using immediately. To quit the browser, click Command + Q. If you’re using Safari, you can also close the app by clicking Quit from the Safari menu.

Step 2: Kill All Processes Related to Adobe Flash Player.

Once you’ve quit the browser, check if there are suspicious processes running in the background. To do this:

1. Click Go > Utilities in the Finder menu.
2. Click Activity Monitor.
3. Check for Adobe Flash Player processes or other suspicious processes that are currently running on your computer.
4. Select the process you want to stop, then click the x button next to it.
5. Confirm the action by clicking Yes.
6. Do this for all suspicious processes in Activity Monitor.

Step 3: Run Your Antivirus Software.

Mac has its built-in antivirus called XProtect to defend the system against malicious software. It checks all applications downloaded from the internet and warns the user against the risks of opening the file.

However, this antivirus is limited to file quarantine. If you want to scan your whole system for viruses and malware, you need to install a reputable antivirus program. Once installed, scan your Mac and delete the infected files.

Step 4: Delete Junk Files.

After removing the virus from your system, delete all junk files that might have been infected by the virus. You can use an app such as Outbyte MacRepair to get rid of all the trash lurking somewhere in your Mac.

Step 5: Clear Browser History and Edit Preferences.

The number one preventive measure against the Adobe Flash Player virus on Mac is to not visit the websites showing these notifications. To avoid stumbling upon these malicious websites, delete them from your browser history by going to Safari > Clear History > Clear all history.

You might also need to clear all website data to ensure that the virus will not keep on coming back. To remove website data, click Preferences from the Safari menu, then choose the Privacy tab. Click Remove All Website Data > Remove Now. Take note that all saved website data will be deleted and you will need to sign in for all websites the next time you visit them.

Step 6: Remove Unfamiliar Extensions.

After clearing your browser history, check Safari for extensions that have been installed by the virus.

To do this:

1. Launch Safari while holding the Shift This will prevent previously opened pages from loading.
2. Click Safari from the top menu, then choose Preferences.
3. Click on the Extensions tab and scan the list for extensions that you don’t recognize.
4. Click on the extension you want to remove, then click the Uninstall button.

Adobe Flash For Mac Safari

Step 7: Check for Recently Installed Software.

It is also possible for malicious software such as the Adobe Flash Player virus to install additional apps on your Mac. Go to Finder > Go > Applications and see if there are new apps that you don’t remember installing. Drag them to the Trash or right-click and then choose Move to Trash to uninstall.

Adobe Flash Player Mac Os X

Final Notes

Apple Mac And Flash Player

The “Flash Player Update REQUIRED” virus on Mac is difficult to get rid of because it keeps coming back no matter what you do. To make sure that you completely delete all infected apps and files, follow the guide above closely. Restart your Mac after performing these steps and see whether the virus symptoms have gone away.

Mac And Flash Player Download