Frequency of updates for Adobe Flash Player

Discussion in 'other security issues & news' started by DIV, Sep 16, 2019.

  1. DIV

    DIV Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jun 4, 2018
    Posts:
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    Location:
    Oz
    Lately it has felt as though Adobe is releasing updates of Flash player every couple of weeks.

    Apparently it has 'only' been about once a month.
    Flash Player 32:
    2019-09-10: important bug and security fixes.
    2019-08-13: important bug fixes.
    2019-07-09: important bug fixes.
    2019-06-11: important bug and security fixes.
    2019-05-14: important bug and security fixes.
    2019-04-25: updated the AIR shared runtime with an important bug fix for video playback.
    2019-04-09: important bug and security fixes.
    2019-03-12:
    important bug and security fixes.
    2019-02-12: important bug and security fixes.
    2019-01-08: important bug fixes.
    2018-12-11: we've updated the AIR SDK and Runtime with bug fixes and new functionality.
    2018-12-05: critical bug fixes and security updates.

    https://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/flash-player-releasenotes.html

    I just wonder what impression other people on this forum have of that.

    My feeling is that Flash Player shouldn't be such a complicated piece of software as to require so many patches.
    I realise that Microsoft Windows may get patches roughly once a month too, but I consider Windows a much more complicated software system, with a lot more interfaces with external hardware and third-party software.

    Am I being unfair? Is it actually (somehow) a good sign that so many bugs and vulnerabilities have been discovered in Adobe Flash Player? Is it possible that this is not even Adobe's fault, but has been caused by circumstances outside of their control that they can merely respond to?
     
  2. DIV

    DIV Registered Member

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    Location:
    Oz
  3. DIV

    DIV Registered Member

    Joined:
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    Posts:
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    Location:
    Oz
    It is also irritating that the Flash update notification doesn't seem to distinguish between browsers, or 'flavours' of Flash (e.g. NPAPI). Or if it does, then it certainly doesn't make this clear to the user.

    So at the moment it seems I'm getting notifications due to an old version of Flash running (32.0.0.255, verus 32.0.0.293) in Internet Explorer (11.0.9600.19541). [In case anyone is wondering, my system is Windows 8.1.]
    But Internet Explorer manages its own Flash plugin. It can't be updated from the Adobe updater.
    Not only that, but Adobe's link to Microsoft's update provides an IE update that had already been installed on my system, which does not provide the latest version of Flash!

    If Adobe cannot provide a mechanism for updating Flash in Internet Explorer, then is it sensible for them to show notifications that Flash is out of date, with a link to the Adobe website that is unable to provide the necessary update?!

    —DIV
     
  4. DIV

    DIV Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jun 4, 2018
    Posts:
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    Location:
    Oz
    Well, how about this for a conspiracy theory?

    Every time I go to update Adobe Flash I am presented with so-called "Optional offers", viz.
    • Yes, install Google Chrome.
    • Yes, install Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer.
    And these "options" are selected by default, so the user has to remember to opt out every time. If the user forgets just once to opt out, then they will be saddled with these options, like it or not.

    So is there any chance of a conflict-of-interest causing Adobe to needlessly offer Flash updates as a ruse to promote Google's wares?
     
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