Since Safari 10 was introduced with macOS Sierra in 2015, Adobe's Flash Player has been disabled on the Mac by default. This means that from time-to-time, when browsing the web on your Mac, you. Adobe Flash Player for Mac is an essential component for watching video on the Mac platform. Flash has many new features and continues to be the ubiquitous Web standard; this software is included with all major Web browsers. Adobe Flash Player for Mac supports. Apple Safari version 14, released for macOS in September 2020, will no longer load Adobe Flash Player or play Flash content. Please visit Apple’s Safari support for more information. For Mac OS X 10.11, macOS 10.12, and later. Choose whether you want to download Adobe Flash Player for Mac Chrome and Opera or for Safari and Firefox by clicking on the second drop-down menu on the left side of the page. Click on the Download now button on the right side of the page.
Got a message that says you have to update Flash Player on Mac? Don’t promptly click the update button. If you are not careful, you can accidentally install adware or malware instead of Flash Player. And that’s not what you need, right?
In this article we’ll show you the best way to check for Flash updates and also give you a comprehensive guide to update Adobe Flash Player for Mac safely. Plus, we’ll tell you how to uninstall it from your computer completely.
What is Flash Player?
For years, Adobe Flash Player has been one of the most popular plug-ins used by web browsers to reproduce videos, web ads, and interactive animations. But now its position is rocked by some security concerns and safer alternative solutions.
Google Chrome and Firefox contain the built-in version of Flash running in the sandboxed mode. This method is safer than running Flash as a plugin. What about Safari, it disables Flash Player by default starting from macOS Sierra. The point is that Apple wants you running on HTML5 — the newer and safer way of browsing the web. It supports the same multimedia elements as Flash but without any security issues.
However, the reality is that you still may need the Adobe Flash Player on your Mac. Many websites will not work if you uninstall it completely. Live streams like BT Sport can only be delivered in Flash, so if you are the BT Sport customer, you’ll want to keep the Flash Player. In addition, a great number of gaming and education sites use Flash and until they implement the HTML5 standards, you’ll need the Flash Player.
Why watch out for Flash updates on Mac?
Adobe is always trying to push its technology further and release the Flash updates to enhance the user experience and security. However, attackers still find the ways to trick you into downloading adware and malware through the popups. That’s why you should know how to protect your Mac against the malicious attacks when you’re trying to update your Adobe Flash for Mac.
Fortunately, it’s easy to make sure that you are installing the real Flash for Mac and are not exposed to the vulnerable software. All you have to do is to be careful and don’t trust the automatic updates.
How to update Flash Player on Mac (if it’s already installed)
Instead of downloading anything from a popup, follow simple steps to check whether you really need to update Adobe Flash on Mac.
Go to the Apple menu and click System Preferences.
In the bottom left corner, choose Flash Player.
Choose the Updates tab.
Click the Check Now button.
If an update is available, click Yes to update. If no updates are available, you have the latest version of a Flash Player for Mac installed.
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Easy enough, right? Make sure to invest some time and check if you do need to update Flash. Otherwise, downloading a false software package may harm your computer.
How to install Flash on your Mac safely
If Flash is not installed, which is by default on all new Macs, here’s a step-by-step guide to install it safely.
Visit the Adobe Flash Player page.
Click the Download now button.
The installer will download to your computer. If you’re using Safari, the file will go to your Downloads folder. If you’re using another browser, it may ask where to save the file.
Open your Downloads folder and find the .dmg installer file.
Double-click the Install Adobe Flash Player file.
You will be asked if you really want to install Adobe Flash Player. Read the message carefully to make sure that it’s the file you just downloaded. Click Open to proceed.
Agree to terms and conditions by clicking a checkbox.
Click the Install button.
In the window that appears, type your username and password.
Click the Install Helper button.
Click Allow Adobe to install updates (recommended).
Click Done.
That’s it. It’s also recommended to relaunch your web browser after installing Flash.
How to uninstall Flash completely
If you’re concerned about the security flaws associated with your Adobe Flash Player, we’ll show you how to uninstall it from your Mac.
Usually, uninstalling Flash can cause a bit of headache. But with CleanMyMac X, you can remove Adobe Flash Player in a few clicks. Just follow these simple steps:
Download CleanMyMac X and launch it.
Go to the Extensions in the sidebar.
Click Preferences Panes and then checkmark Flash Player.
Click the Remove button.
As you see, uninstalling Flash with CleanMyMac X is as easy as pie. Moreover, the whole process won’t take more than five minutes. Try it out to uninstall Flash Player on Mac completely.
That’s it! Follow the tips above and don’t let the tricky popups and websites take advantage of you. This way you’ll stay up-to-date safely.
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Although Adobe has written and published instructions to run Flash on iOS, Steve Jobs, Apple’s co-founder, and former CEO, famously fought against the free programs and, namely, free Adobe software.
In an article published on apple.com in April 2010, Steve highlighted the reasons why Adobe Flash Player will never be an official component of Safari, Apple’s integrated web browser. Jobs pushed hard for an upgrade to HTML to support videos without Flash. Ultimately, the result became what we know as HTML5.
Why Is Apple Against Flash?
As highlighted is in his article, Jobs main concern was never security. In fact, he explicitly mentioned that protecting the App Store was never the main reason behind Apple’s stance against Flash. Steve argued that Flash is a closed system because it’s developed and owned by Adobe. In contrast, HTML5, CSS, Javascript are open systems which is why Apple decided to adopt them. The former Apple’s CEO was against Flash because it was 100% property of a private company despite being widely available.
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In the same article, Steve Jobs went on to explain that HTML5 allows web developers to create advanced graphics, animations, and typography without relying on 3rd party software such as Flash. He also argued that major video service providers such as YouTube, Netflix, HBO, Vimeo, and FOX don’t depend on Flash. When Steve wrote his article, almost 40% of online video content was viewable on Apple products. Apple was able to meet all of their customers’ video-related needs without Flash support.
Is Flash Safe for Mac?
The short answer is yes, Flash can run on a Mac without any major issues. However, since it is not officially supported by Apple for the reasons mentioned above, it will require some tweaking first. Here’s what you need to do before and after installing Flash on a Mac:
- Check this brief guide to see which version works best with your iOS version.
- Uninstall any previous version you have of Flash Player.
- Close all applications before installing.
- After the installation finishes, reboot your device.
- When the device boots back up, head to Safari>System Preferences>Flash Player>Advanced then click Check Now.
- Close and relaunch Safari.
The most important step is making sure that you’re downloading Flash from Adobe. To avoid any confusion, click here to reach the download page. In all cases, you should always make sure that you’re downloading from adobe.com and not any other domain.
Alternatives to Flash
If you prefer not to download and install Adobe Flash for any reason, you should try using Google Chrome instead of Safari. Chrome comes with an integrated Flash player and will not require any extra permission. Flash also comes turned on by default in Google Chrome so you will not have to do any extra tweaking.
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Alternatively, you should consider dealing with websites built on modern technologies. Particularly, websites who support HTML5. As mentioned in this article by Aphr, 95% of websites who used to rely on Flash switched to HTML5. If everyone is switching to Flash, it shouldn’t be hard to find an alternative to your favorite website after a quick online search.