How to disable flash on five popular browsers

It has come a time to disable this internet relic.

Adobe Flash Player is always a big target for hackers. In fact it is always riddled with a range of security flaws and vulnerabilities. Even with all the mess, most of us still use it because there are many websites still serving Flash content that have no desire to switch to HTML5. That being said, Flash isn’t absolutely necessary anymore, and we can happily live without it.

Disable flash

First open your browser and go the the get.adobe.com/flashplayer/about/ and check if you have flash actually installed.

To disable this flash plugin in your browser of choice:

• Chrome: Click on the three dashes icon in top right corner and select Settings. In the search bar type Flash. Select the option Content Settings.
• Firefox: Select “Add-ons” from the main menu. Select “Plugins.” Open the “Shockwave Flash” dropdown menu and select “Never Activate.”
• Microsoft Edge: Click on the “Setting and more” icon, which looks like three dots. Click “Settings,” then scroll down and click “View advanced settings.” Click on the switch under “Use Adobe Flash Player” to turn it off and disable it completely.
• Internet Explorer: Open the gear menu, and select “Manage add-ons.” Click the Show box and select “All add-ons.” Scroll to “Microsoft Windows Third Party Application Component” and select “Shockwave Flash Object.” Click “Disable.”
• Opera: Click on the Opera logo on the top left. Select the Settings from the list. Then select Websites. And in the middle of the screen you will see Flash. Select the option Block sites from running Flash

Flash security risks

Flash thrives on malicious sites. According to the Microsoft Security Intelligence Report in 2014, “Adobe Flash objects were the most commonly detected type of object hosted on malicious pages in every quarter except 2Q14” (see page 34 of the report for details). In July 2015, Facebook’s Chief Security Officer, Alex Stamos, tweeted: “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.” So be smart. Disable flash! #disableflash