Gone In A Flash

Google follows other browser-makers that have phased out full support for Adobe’s Flash software.

16:30 17 May 2016

Google is set to phase out its full support for Adobe’s Flash software, a multimedia content that many cyber thieves use to compromise web users.

 

The technology will only be enabled by default on 10 sites, including YouTube and Facebook. On all others, users will have to choose to activate it.

 

Anthony Laforge, Google’s technical lead on Chrome said on a Chronium-dev discussion forum that the 10 chosen sites, which include Amazon, Twitch, and a couple of Russian sites, were the most popular Flash-using sites that users visited. He added that the changes would mean that on other sites, Chrome will use alternative technology such as HTML5 to play video. However, if Flash is the only one available, browser users will be asked if they want to allow the software to run.

 

Shortly after Google’s announcement, security firm Fireeye released a report revealing that cyber thieves have exploited a newly discovered vulnerability in Flash. The malicious campaign, which involved including attack code in Flash file embedded in Microsoft Office documents, began only days after the bug was first discovered.