PSA: Another Flash exploit confirmed, everyone should just delete Flash for good

Hey listen, we don’t mean to sound like we’re railing on Adobe Flash Player, but at this point it’s just getting from bad to worse.

Just three months ago, two major Flash exploits were discovered. The first zero-day exploit meant that hackers could run and install malicious malware on PCs and Macs running Flash, and there was nothing anyone could do about it until a patch was released.

The second zero-day exploit for Flash Player was found just one week after the first one, again with no fix until the patch was released.

In August, hackers used Yahoo’s ad network to download malware onto victims’s PCs. The malware then targeted out-of-date versions of Adobe Flash, which it used to take over the computer, either holding it for ransom or secretly loading websites on the PC’s browsers.

Today, Adobe has confirmed yet another major Flash Player security vulnerability that affects all versions of Flash for Windows, Mac and Linux computers. Using this exploit, attackers can crash a PC or even take complete control over the victim’s computer.

This new Flash vulnerability was discovered by security researchers at Trend Micro. Adobe has released a security bulletin where it said that it’s “ ... aware of a report that an exploit for this vulnerability is being used in limited, targeted attacks” and that a security update will be available as early as October 16. The company rates this as a critical vulnerability.

Our advice? Either disable your browser’s Flash Player for the next week and wait for Adobe’s patch, and then wait for the next roller coaster of vulnerability announcements and patches, or just uninstall Flash Player altogether, and save yourself the risks.

Source: Adobe, Trend Micro, via BGR.

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