back to article Flash – aaah-aarrgh! Patch now as hackers exploit fresh holes

Adobe has urged users to patch their Windows, OS X and Linux editions of Flash Player to address 23 security vulnerabilities, including one that is actively being targeted in the wild. The March update includes a number of fixes for vulnerabilities that could, if exploited, allow an attacker to remotely execute code on a …

  1. Andy Non Silver badge
    Facepalm

    Jeesh!

    Just uninstall it already!

    1. Joe Werner Silver badge

      Re: Jeesh!

      I would love to. Except there is some stupid group chat thing that is used in one of the projects I am part of. But I agree, somebody should take that crapware behind the shed and put some bullets in it. And a stake. And burn it, bury the ashes at a crossroad at midnight, and...

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Jeesh!

        "Just uninstall it already!"

        The update has done that itself for me on FireFox 45.0. Keeps failing when it gets to the initialize point. Tried many times - even uninstalled the previous version. Now it is totally bust. IE11 updates ok.

        Switched off uBlock Origin and Ghostery to no avail. I can live without it on the laptop - but need it on the big PC for some web videos that are outside my control.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Paris Hilton

          Re: Jeesh!

          Mate, you need to switch to an HTML5 porn site.

        2. joed

          Re: Jeesh!

          @"IE11 updates ok"

          sure, it now also updates you (to Windows 10).

        3. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Jeesh!

          " Keeps failing when it gets to the initialize point. "

          Solved. It needed me to login under an administrator user. Just giving the administrator authorisation in a protected user wasn't enough.

      2. Trixr

        Re: Jeesh!

        Let's not talk about Certain Hardware Vendors who have written their consoles in this crapware. I'm almost nostalgic for Java.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Jeesh!

          Yep, although I don't have to be nostalgic for Java since I have a bunch of other tools that require that. And the .NET stuff for yet other tools....

        2. TheVogon

          Re: Jeesh!

          "I'm almost nostalgic for Java."

          Java is the only product I can think of with more holes than Flash! They both need to die.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Jeesh!

            Java is the only product I can think of with more holes than Flash! They both need to die.

            *cough* Microsoft Silverlight *cough*

            The only reason you don't hear much of it is because it's thankfully used less and less. It's actually the reason I ditched a Logitech programmable remote control.

            And Windows, of course. But that's not really news anymore.

      3. Sven Coenye

        Re: Jeesh!

        Or, in the US at least, if you are in any way involved in the higher education field. The National Student Clearinghouse ships electronic transcripts in Adobe Portfolio format only. Even if there is only a single plain PDF* inside, you won't get to see it unless FlashPlayer is installed.

        * To make the insult complete, the PDF is a bitmap scan image of a paper printout.

      4. tony2heads
        Mushroom

        Re: Jeesh!

        Nuke the entire site from orbit, It's the only way to be sure

    2. This post has been deleted by its author

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Jeesh!

      Certain sites make you jump through hoops if you don't install Flash (BBC, I'm looking at you!)

      1. VinceH

        Re: Jeesh!

        "Certain sites make you jump through hoops if you don't install Flash (BBC, I'm looking at you!)

        The BBC now have a beta HTML5 player in operation.

        Except on the (small number of) occasions I've tried to watch something on their site, I get "This program cannot be played in our HTML5 player - please download Adobe Flash Player" or words to that effect.

        Umm. No thanks, BBC.

    4. joed

      Re: Jeesh!

      You can't on Windows 8+.

      Another brilliant idea by MS.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Jeesh!

        but you can just turn it off in IE. And flash updates are provided via windows update so its a lot easier to keep flash patched.

        Windows10 edge is better its just a on off switch. If it wasn't for the BBC we'd get rid of it on our site.

    5. Joe Gurman

      Re: Jeesh!

      Truly. What is this "Flash" of which you speak? I have a vague memory of some horror by that name, but our tribal elders forbid us to speak of it, so I don't know what terrible things it must have done, in the dim past.

    6. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Jeesh!

      Our stupid managed service provider uses it as does app dynamics :(

    7. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Jeesh!

      Just uninstall it already!

      Dispatch war rocket "Ajax" to bring back its body.

      Anyway, Flashblock on Firefox, been using it for years. (#)

      In fact, I liked Flash advertising, since it only ever showed up as a black box with a "play" button for me. The move to HTML5 made me realise how obnoxiously distracting animated ads are, and leads to regular blocking of ad servers via my hosts file (yeah, I know there are probably better ways to do it).

      Also, Java disabled in Firefox.

      (#) Had to add an exception to YouTube at one point- which I'm not sure is active any more as its behaviour is a bit weird just now- but it's mostly okay.

    8. Doctor_Wibble

      Re: Jeesh!

      Yes I would uninstall it but this is the bit where I go into my regular btching about having to use it just to check my sodding phone bill.

  2. cosymart
    Megaphone

    I just stopped it!

    Bloody ***!! MacAfee hidden tick thing!!!

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Facepalm

    So, which comes first?

    Vulnerability-free Flash, or the next ice age?

    Feel free to vote on the matter.

    1. Mark 85

      Re: So, which comes first?

      Vulnerability-free Flash, or the next ice age?

      Feel free to vote on the matter.

      I would have went with Vulnerability-free Flash, or the Heat Death of the Universe?

      But have an upvote as we know Flash will never, ever be Vulnerability-Free.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: So, which comes first?

        Heat Death of the Universe is a certainty.

    2. GerryMC

      Re: So, which comes first?

      "Vulnerability-free Flash, or the next ice age? "

      Do you mean in Hell?

    3. a_yank_lurker

      Re: So, which comes first?

      Several ice ages.

    4. gollux

      Re: So, which comes first?

      Some say the world will end in fire,

      Some say in ice.

      From what I’ve tasted of desire

      I hold with those who favor fire.

      But if it had to perish twice,

      I think I know enough of hate

      To say that for destruction ice

      Is also great

      And would suffice.

      - Robert Frost

      So, our local sun going super-nova or the heat death of the universe?

  4. gollux

    Thank you for the amicable divorce...

    The sun's nice here in Bermuda, celebrating the 5th anniversary of us parting our ways...

    Sorry your portion of the money from the property division has run out, the kids said to say hi, but decline to visit anymore as the flashy lifestyle kept declining every time they visited. For some reason, they don't like staying in pay by the month hotels with those huge flashing ad billboards outside the windows.

    Jerry didn't like the time the mugger held a knife to his throat and Vivian says that walking through the discarded syringes and broken bottles is scary. Bobbi just shivers when your name is mentioned, haven't been able to get out of her what happened.

    Every so often, I remember the good and fun times, before it went south so badly, miss you then. But then the news reports show me that the right decision was made, I sigh and think to myself, "There but for the Grace of God and Flash Uninstaller (https://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/support/uninstall_flash_player.exe) go I..."

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    FFS

    Flash Fail State

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    If you need these things on your computer enable 'click to activate'

    This is the Firefox config - not sure about other browsers. Works well, survives updates

    https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/set-adobe-flash-click-play-firefox

  7. Efros

    hackers exploit fresh holes

    Brought to mind the spoof version of the film rather than the Queen soundtracked one. With one of the all time great quotes

    Monster: [after being shot in the bum by Flesh Gordon] Ooh, the pain! The humiliation! The haemorrhoids!

  8. wolfetone Silver badge

    "General Kala, Flash Update approaching."

    "What do you mean Flash Update approaching?"

    *some lasers*

    "OPEN FIRE! ALL WEAPONS!"

    *more shooting*

    "Dispatch HTML5 Video Codecs, to destroy it's body"

  9. Search Robot Bing

    It's the end of the internet, we're all doomed!

  10. sisk

    Another day, another Flash vuln.

    Completely unrelated I'm now in the mood to watch some cheesy 1970s sci-fi for some reason.

  11. Known Hero

    Can we just save everybody alot of time and effort

    And just sticky this news story to the front page and leave it, removes dates and specifics apart from "adobe flash" and your good to go.

  12. channel extended
    Pirate

    My Parents

    Always told us that flashers were evil despicable people who deserve to die. Now die already!

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