Facebook calls for end to Flash as Firefox blocks it over hacking holes

Adobe’s Flash blocked by mainstream browser over critical security bugs actively exploited by hackers, as calls for its decommissioning rise

@SamuelGibbs
Last modified on Tuesday 14 July 2015 06.48 EDT

The mob is turning against Flash. Mozilla has blocked every version of Adobe’s Flash plugin from running within its Firefox browser, while Facebook’s head of security has called for Adobe to kill it off.

The moves come following a series of vulnerabilities in Flash being actively exploited, including those exposed by the Hacking Team compromise.

Firefox users seeking to view Flash-based content, such as videos, adverts or more complex web tools for uploading images and other actions, will need to click again and accept a warning that “Flash is known to be vulnerable. Use with caution”.

That means users of Firefox cannot use Flash by default and will not be able to until Adobe patches the security bugs and updates the plugin. Adobe has struggled to keep up with the number of bugs and vulnerabilities being exposed within Flash.

At the same time, Facebook’s head of security Alex Stamos, who is previously credited with significantly improving the security of Yahoo’s operations, called for Flash to be killed off.

(More here.)