Apple Enforces Adobe Flash Player Security Upgrade with Updated Malware Definitions

[Eminemdrdre00]

I want to know why Apple still doesn't use HTML5 for their movie trailers website.
http://trailers.apple.com

QuickTime is no different than Flash if you're going to require users to have it installed in order to watch a video.

 

[djtech42]

What if you are running the beta version of Flash?

 

[Parasprite]

I want to know why Apple still doesn't use HTML5 for their movie trailers website.
http://trailers.apple.com

QuickTime is no different than Flash if you're going to require users to have it installed in order to watch a video.

Standardized DRM, afaik, isn't finalized in any part of HTML5 yet (I could be wrong about this). I would assume that their agreements with the studios require them to use at least some form of DRM on all the videos Apple hosts but doesn't own (which includes trailers). An easy way to see if they have some form of DRM is by trying to take a screenshot of a playing video. If it has DRM, the image will have... a big hole where the video should be*.

Furthermore, from what I've gathered, it seems as if the video files Apple has come straight from the studios, and are only stored on Apple's server. In other words, they probably don't have the ability to abruptly change formats without writing up new contracts. Even more so, I not sure that Apple even has the ability to convert the files even if they wanted to.

* Oddly enough, this doesn't seem to affect the screenshots taken on iOS, even with videos purchased from iTunes.

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What if you are running the beta version of Flash?

Assuming you are using 13.0.0.80 and not something more like an old beta version of 11.9...

Since the exploit itself wasn't revealed... and by the time it is revealed (...if it is revealed) there will likely be a new beta to install with the vulnerability fixed. Either way I wouldn't worry about it too much. By getting everybody else to upgrade from 12.0.0.44 and below to a newer version, the chance that somebody will even bother to put the effort in to exploit older versions will likely decrease.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

If you uninstall Flash, how are you supposed to use Domino's pizza tracker?

Also, a lot of shopping websites my fiancé goes to require flash. She's always calling me over to add websites to the whitelist for Click2Plugin.

 

[Mike MA]

Flash needs to go. It's holding us back: HTML 5 is the future.

But still way to many sites only offer flash related content. HTML5 spread quickly in the very beginning, but it seems adoption slowed down tremendously.

 

[musika]

Can you tell me what else (player) to use in Safari? Most of sites uses Flash, example - the NY Times videos.

How do you watch YouTube? If I don't install Flash, I can't watch YouTube using HTML5. So I simply use Click2Flash and then watch HTML5, then load flash as I need it.

As I recall, when I removed Flash, even with AdBlock on, I got more clutter on websites, where flash ads were.

So if you can tell me how to solve my issues above, I'll remove Flash too.

I turned on the "Develop" menu in Safari preferences, so anytime I see a site with video that won't play, I change my user agent to iPad. I know it's annoying, but it's worth it for me.

 

[Msail30bay]

I turned on the "Develop" menu in Safari preferences, so anytime I see a site with video that won't play, I change my user agent to iPad. I know it's annoying, but it's worth it for me.

View attachment 459764

I just did….. THANKS!!! Did not know that. I hope it works. I've opened the Develop before BUT did not want to mess around with it, so I unchecked it.

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I'd hardly say most sites use Flash.

I do find that when sites *only* use Flash (like the NYTimes mentioned above), they're far more interested in serving you video ads which you have to suffer through before you actually get to content.

TV stations and TV networks are the worst for this.

Basically, if they try to ram an ad down my throat, I'm simply not going to watch anything from them.

I've yet to feel that I've missed something actually important.

The NYT wants to force a 30 second ad on me before a 60 second recap of what they put in print and on-line in words.



Yeah, no.

It's not just the Times…. some my porn sites as well. So what should I do? Uninstall Flash player…. remove Adobe? Is there something else I can install that will play videos, as mentioned above.

 

[smithrh]

Most HTML5 plugins/extensions let you add sites to whitelists, usually with a simple right click.

Yeah, there are a few websites out there that are still stuck in the early-mid 90s, but all of those sites have also forsaken mobile access. Once they figure that out and get some available budget, they'll upgrade.

I don't have time for sites that can't figure that out, if you haven't noticed!

 

[2457282]

well I went home after reading the earlier note about the adobe fix and upgraded. Now after reading this, I will run home and try some of the alternative so that I can remove Adobe from my life. I don't need it on my iPad or my iPhone, I like the tone here that I really don't need it on my iMac. So bye-bye adobe.

 

[Nermal]

I've found that Flash needs be *installed* before the plugins that allow HTML5 will work.

How... logical?

I actually lost my little remaining faith in Google yesterday when a coworker tried to log into a Google account. He entered the correct username and password, clicked Next, and was then greeted with a second login screen with someone else's email address pre-filled (not changeable) and was asked for their password. So buggy (and probably a violation of privacy law too!)

 

[Eminemdrdre00]

Standardized DRM, afaik, isn't finalized in any part of HTML5 yet (I could be wrong about this). I would assume that their agreements with the studios require them to use at least some form of DRM on all the videos Apple hosts but doesn't own (which includes trailers). An easy way to see if they have some form of DRM is by trying to take a screenshot of a playing video. If it has DRM, the image will have... a big hole where the video should be*.

Furthermore, from what I've gathered, it seems as if the video files Apple has come straight from the studios, and are only stored on Apple's server. In other words, they probably don't have the ability to abruptly change formats without writing up new contracts. Even more so, I not sure that Apple even has the ability to convert the files even if they wanted to.

* Oddly enough, this doesn't seem to affect the screenshots taken on iOS, even with videos purchased from iTunes.

That's a good point about HTML5/DRM but I don't think that's needed here. These are just movie trailers, advertisements basically, not full movies. Plus the studios all upload their trailers to YouTube too, where there isn't DRM protection and there's HTML5 playback.

The same applies to all of Apple's own commercials on Apple.com.

 

[JosephAW]

Flash need to go like Windows XP.
Adobe needs to set an eol date for flash like Microsoft did for XP.
Probably half the video traffic on the internet is mobile. Enough said.

 

[smithrh]

How... logical?

Actually, it does make some level of technical sense. Back in the early days of the web, MIME labels were established for media types. I'd wager that before your browser will it will accept a certain media type (e.g., flash), it needs to understand that it can handle that media type.

The best situation then would be for your browser to *say* that it accepts flash even though it doesn't, then you wouldn't have to install it.

Or maybe this already happens today - I've got so many guards against flash, I've lost track.

 

[CylonGlitch]

I always use chrome when flash is needed, otherwise I just use safari.
and I never install flash plugin since chrome launched.

That is exactly how I operate. 99% of the time I'm in Safari, but when I need flash for something, off to Chrome.

 

[ControlC]

Before anyone starts going on about how Orwellian Xprotect is and that they have a God-given right to run flawed Adobe plug-ins, this ONLY AFFECTS SAFARI. So you are 'free' to download any other browser and run vulnerable software if keeping your pants down is your thing.

Or set Safari to run the vulnerable version anyway.

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I turned on the "Develop" menu in Safari preferences, so anytime I see a site with video that won't play, I change my user agent to iPad. I know it's annoying, but it's worth it for me.

View attachment 459764

You could also use Click2Flash and set YouTube to run in an HTML5 or QuickTime player instead of using Flash. It's fully automatic that way. That's what I do. Flash is only needed 0.000001% of the time for me now.

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I want to know why Apple still doesn't use HTML5 for their movie trailers website.
http://trailers.apple.com

QuickTime is no different than Flash if you're going to require users to have it installed in order to watch a video.

While I agree about the HTML5, QuickTime is very different from Flash. For playing videos, it's a lot better than Flash and HTML5, but Flash and HTML5 can do other things obviously.

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I have yet to find a single video on YouTube that was missing an HTML5 version.

Period.

Quality is just as good.

Not sure what to tell you, check your extensions, reset Safari, but I've not watched a Flash-based video on YouTube for a very long time now.

Maybe because I watch a lot of old videos, it's hard for me to find ones that are in HTML5! I use QuickTime Player now anyway. I don't see any reason to use clunky interpreted code to play videos, and yes I mean HTML 5 too.

 

[PabloGS]

Apple's use of the Xprotect system has, however, declined in recent months, perhaps signaling a slowdown in malware and other security issues affecting Mac systems.

I think quite the contrary might be true! It is more likely, a rise in threads has occurred, given the increased popularity of OS X and iOS. Exploits are becoming more valuable and are hence sold for large sums on the black market instead of being published or reported.

This trend is observable on Windows and Linux systems too. Android is a notable exception, and a really negative one, if I may add.

It is kind of a security by obscurity safety feeling. Just because you don't see something doesn't mean its not there.

 

[szw-mapple fan]

I always use chrome when flash is needed, otherwise I just use safari.
and I never install flash plugin since chrome launched.

I quit using Chrome and switched to using Youtube5 (that mandates the HTML5 version of youtube) on Safari because the Flash version is way too bloated with 14 second ads.

 

[LV426]

Flash need to go like Windows XP.
Adobe needs to set an eol date for flash like Microsoft did for XP.
Probably half the video traffic on the internet is mobile. Enough said.

Adobe themselves have already discontinued Flash development for mobile and have stated that HTML 5 is the best solution for mobiles.

 

[morespce54]

Sorry to hijack this thread, but how can I check if/when the definition has been updated? Thanks

 

[blesscheese]

I haven't had Flash installed on a Mac since 2011. I'm better off without it.

Exactly. I removed any/all Flash, and any/all Acrobat anything...basically, there is nothing Adobe anything anywhere on my computer.

And life is much, much better...it was difficult at first, but now I can get pretty much any video I want in HTML5.

 

[Michael Goff]

Exactly. I removed any/all Flash, and any/all Acrobat anything...basically, there is nothing Adobe anything anywhere on my computer.

And life is much, much better...it was difficult at first, but now I can get pretty much any video I want in HTML5.

I take it you don't watch Hulu on the desktop?

 

[djtech42]

Great... Safari is now blocking the beta version, and I'm not allowed to install the current version because a newer version is already installed on my Mac. Now what?

 

[Michael Goff]

Great... Safari is now blocking the beta version, and I'm not allowed to install the current version because a newer version is already installed on my Mac. Now what?

Not if you have the most recent version of the beta.

I've been using it all day.

 

[djtech42]

Not if you have the most recent version of the beta.

I've been using it all day.

For some reason, it was temporarily blocking it. Now it is working.

 

[Michael Goff]

For some reason, it was temporarily blocking it. Now it is working.

Maybe it hadn't updated yet?

Flash's updater can be ... weird.