Apple Safari and Flash Player Vulnerabilities
Not too long ago, I wrote about Apple Malware and how it is becoming more prevalent. So Apple recently released an update to their browser (Safari). Not much was added besides the normal security fixes and a few bugs, but one interesting thing they did was to disable the use of older versions of Flash, which was the cause of a big "stink" because Apple took their time in releasing a fix.
When you download the new version of Safari and install it, the browser disables Flash, alerts you to the fact and then offers to take you to Adobe’s site to grab the latest version of Flash.
It has been also been mentioned that the Windows version of Safari doesn’t include this feature. That’s because the Flash player for Windows now auto-updates in the background (if you give it permission), which will keep Windows users current without being constantly nagged.
Mac users, meanwhile, continue to have to update Flash manually. Adobe says a Flash background updater is in the works.
So if you have not updated your Mac OS to fix the security hole in Flash, your Safari browser will disable it, which will cause some websites to not properly work. Do yourself a favor and update Flash, and your browser so you are on top of any security issues that have been identified.
-Bryan