Update Adobe Flash Player Scam?

[ItsManson]

Hi guys, I've been getting this pop-up ad non-stop every day even after I download it, it comes back a week later and it seems kind of suspicious because I disabled the normal Adobe Dialog Box on startup but this still keeps popping up. When I press download it takes me to this site

[Just Shoot Me]

I moved your post to a better forum.

[_maria_ · Accepted solution]

That does look like Adobe's update notification.

Note that if you have Flash Player for different browsers (e.g. Flash Player ActiveX Control for IE, Flash Player NPAPI plugin for Firefox, or Flash Player PPAPI plugin for Chromium-based browsers) you'll need to update each one individually.  This could explain why you're getting the update notification multiple times.  Based on the screenshot provided, you're updating Flash Player NPAPI plugin for Firefox.  The download page autodetects the OS and browser and offers the Flash Player for that browser.  If you have other browsers, you'll need to repeat for those browsers.

To avoid this, opt into Background Updates (update option = Allow Adobe to install updates (recommended)).  Background Updates updates all Flash Player types* installed on a system within 24 hours of a new version being released.  Notification Updates (what you have opted into, can take up to 7 days to notify that an update is available.

* Flash Player types that are not embedded in the browser, which are updated by the respective browser vendor.

[Im5C8F]

Hi community,

I've been getting the Adobe Flash update notication over the past few days every hour or so from Safari.  Even when I click to download, the link only sends me to the end-of-life notification, and I'm not sure why the update pop up stops once I've seen that page.  Since the end-of-life notification only gives me purchasing options, the update pop-up now effectively serves as a sales harassment, which I find incredibly annooying.  Aside from changing my options for Flash update notifiations from System Preferences, is there another workaround? 

Thank you!

[Im5C8F]

Hi community,

I've been getting the Adobe Flash update notification over the past few days every hour or so from Safari.  Even when I click to download, the link only sends me to the end-of-life notification, and I'm not sure why the update pop up does NOT stop once I've seen that page.  Since the end-of-life notification only gives me purchasing options, the update pop-up now effectively serves as a sales harassment, which I find incredibly annooying.  Aside from changing my options for Flash update notifiations from System Preferences, is there another workaround? 

Thank you!

[Test Screen Name]

Please show a screenshot of this "Flash update notification". It may be a fake, and dangerous. Also, there is NOTHING you can buy to replace Flash, so it isn't clear what anyone would be offering you to buy.

[Im5C8F]

Since I stopped getting the notifications once I turned off the update notifications, I don't think these are fake.

Still, when I click through, below is what I see each time. 

[Im5C8F]

Here's also the picture of the notification itself. 

[Test Screen Name]

I never trust popups, because if I was a bad guy I would start by making exact copies of real popups. So, if you want to update Flash you should just download it from http://get.adobe.com/flash .

HOWEVER, I notice you said Safari. Did you recently get an update to Safari 14? (Or, worse, are you running in Big Sur)? If so, Safari 14 blocked Flash Player forever. HOWEVER, the Flash Player Updater is an app on your computer. It knows nothing about Apple's plans to close down Flash a few months early; so this might lead to a loop, where the updater wants to update, but the browser just takes you to the EOL page. In this case uninstalling Flash Player may well be the best way to go.

[Im5C8F]

Thank you--I appreciate your recommendation.

[_maria_]

Sounds like you're default browser is Safari.  The Flash Player update notification launches the default browser to download the update.  Since Apple dropped support for Flash Player in Safari 14, Safari users are redirected to the end-of-life notification. 

If Safari is you're only browser and you don't need Flash Player, download the uninstaller posted at https://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/uninstall-flash-player-mac-os.html

If you do require Flash Player, use one of the other supported browsers:

• Chrome - embeds Flash Player no need to install it separately
• Firefox, uses the same NPAPI plugin as Safari - update the plugin by launching Firefox and navigating to https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer
• Opera: uses the PPAPI plugin - install the plugin by launching Opera and navigating to https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer

[Im5C8F]

Thank you for the recommendations.  How do I check my default browser?  As far as I remember, I never set it to Safari.

[Test Screen Name]

Apple will have set it to Safari, as it's the only browser they ship. If you didn't change it, then it will still be Safari. 

[_maria_]

To check the default browser, launch Safari and go to Preferences > General - it's the first item at the top.

However, as OP states, if you haven't changed the setting, then Safari is the default browser.  And, at this time,

a user is only redirected to the end-of-life FAQ is if they navigate to the Flash download page using Safari.