Adobe Officially Ends Flash Support, Recommends Uninstalling Immediately

Adobe in 2017 announced plans to end support for its Flash browser plug-in at the end of 2020. Now that it's officially 2021, support for the software has ended, and Adobe will begin blocking content from running in Flash Player beginning on January 12.

adobe flash logo
Flash's elimination should not heavily impact users because many popular browsers have already moved away from the format. Additionally, iPhone and iPad users are not affected by the change, as iOS and iPadOS have never supported Flash.

Apple co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs offered his "Thoughts on Flash" in a 2010 open letter, criticizing Adobe's software for its reliability, incompatibility with mobile sites, and battery drain on mobile devices. Jobs also said that Adobe was "painfully slow to adopt enhancements to Apple's platforms" and further innovation from Apple would not be hindered by a "cross platform development tool."

In the past, Adobe's Flash Player had continually suffered from vulnerabilities that exposed Mac and PC users to malware and other security risks that caused vendors like Microsoft and Apple to work tirelessly to keep up with security fixes.

Since Flash Player will no longer receive updates, Adobe recommends that all users immediately remove the software "to help protect their systems."

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Five Features Coming to AirPods Pro 3

Friday June 27, 2025 10:52 am PDT by
Apple hasn't updated the AirPods Pro since 2022, and the earbuds are due for a refresh. We're counting on a new model this year, and we've seen several hints of new AirPods tucked away in Apple's code. Rumors suggest that Apple has some exciting new features planned that will make it worthwhile to upgrade to the latest model. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Heal...
iPhone Car Key WWDC 2025

Apple Announces 13 Automakers Planning to Offer iPhone Car Keys

Friday June 27, 2025 11:42 am PDT by
In 2020, Apple added a digital car key feature to its Wallet app, allowing users to lock, unlock, and start a compatible vehicle with an iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature is currently offered by select automakers, including Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and a handful of others, and it is set to expand further. During its WWDC 2025 keynote, Apple said that 13...
anker power bank recall

PSA: Anker Recalls Multiple Power Banks Due to Fire Risk

Friday June 27, 2025 4:16 pm PDT by
Popular accessory maker Anker this month launched two separate recalls for its power banks, some of which may be a fire risk. The first recall affects Anker PowerCore 10000 Power Banks sold between June 1, 2016 and December 31, 2022 in the United States. Anker says that these power banks have a "potential issue" with the battery inside, which can lead to overheating, melting of plastic...
Chase Sapphire Reserve Apple Perk Feature

Chase Sapphire Reserve Card Introduces New Perk for Apple Customers

Wednesday June 25, 2025 2:08 pm PDT by
Chase this week announced a series of new perks for its premium Sapphire Reserve credit card, and one of them is for a pair of Apple services. Specifically, the credit card now offers complimentary annual subscriptions to Apple TV+ and Apple Music, a value of up to $250 per year. If you are already paying for Apple TV+ and/or Apple Music directly through Apple, those subscriptions will...
A18 Pro Chip

New MacBook With A18 Pro Chip Spotted in Apple Code

Monday June 30, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
Apple is developing a MacBook with the A18 Pro chip, according to findings in backend code uncovered by MacRumors. Earlier today, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip. The machine is expected to feature a 13-inch display, the A18 Pro chip, and color options that include silver, blue, pink, and yellow. MacRumors...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in a Few Months With These 12 New Features

Thursday June 26, 2025 2:00 am PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are around three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max in September this year. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an...
macbook air spacegray purple

Apple Planning to Launch Low-Cost MacBook Powered By iPhone Chip

Monday June 30, 2025 3:20 am PDT by
Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. In an article published on X, Kuo explained that the device will feature a 13-inch display and the A18 Pro chip, making it the first Mac powered by an iPhone chip. The A18 Pro chip debuted in the iPhone 16 Pro last year. To date, all Apple silicon Macs have contained M-series...
CarPlay Ultra Climate Controls

Here's Which Vehicle Brands Will and Won't Offer Apple's CarPlay Ultra

Friday June 27, 2025 9:52 am PDT by
Apple last month announced the launch of CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. There was news this week about which automakers will and won't offer CarPlay Ultra, and we have provided an updated list below. CarPlay Ultra is currently limited to newer Aston Martin vehicles in the U.S. and Canada. Fortunately, if you cannot...
apple watch ultra 2 new black

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Finally Coming After Two-Year Hiatus

Tuesday June 24, 2025 3:40 am PDT by
Apple will finally deliver the Apple Watch Ultra 3 sometime this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong (via @jukanlosreve). The analyst expects both the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 to arrive this year (likely alongside the new iPhone 17 lineup, if previous launches are anything to go by), according to his latest product roadmap shared with...

Top Rated Comments

Agent47 Avatar
59 months ago
Good riddance to Flash, RealPlayer, Divx, SilverLight, and all of the other crap codecs and plug-ins that made early multimedia such a catastrophe. Some of it may have been necessary, but in the end it seem to serve everyone except the end-user.
Score: 44 Votes (Like | Disagree)
eRondeau Avatar
59 months ago
A little perspective...

Flash was released by Macromedia 25 years ago, which was purchased by Adobe in 2005. At that time the web was in an uncomfortable transition from a text-based environment to a multimedia environment. The demand for rich content was strong except nobody knew quite how to do it. The eventual winner (HTML-5) was still years away, so for a decade Flash was about the only reliable way to get video & multimedia online. Flash dominated "Web 2.0" for years and professional Flash websites were stunningly impressive indeed. Its downfall is well-documented in Steve Jobs' open letter and elsewhere, but in the years before many young adults reading this were born -- Flash was ubiquitous online and in many ways was the backbone of the public internet.
Score: 43 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Abazigal Avatar
59 months ago
The lesson that Apple keeps teaching, and which others keep ignoring, is that to bring about meaningful change, you have to be bold and unapologetic in forcing about the change you want to see.

What will be next, I wonder.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cmaier Avatar
59 months ago
What cracks me up is that some of the same people who currently complain about Apple’s non-support of X, Y or Z are the same people who insisted Apple was doomed for not supporting flash on iPhoneOS.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ghanwani Avatar
59 months ago
If only websites stopped using it. I stopped using Flash a while ago and yet I have visited so many websites (e.g. banks, car sites) that need Flash, so I just end up leaving.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hot-gril Avatar
59 months ago

If only websites stopped using it. I stopped using Flash a while ago and yet I have visited so many websites (e.g. banks, car sites) that need Flash, so I just end up leaving.
I'd be very scared if my money were managed in a Flash program.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)