The Whys and Hows of Disabling Flash Player on Windows 10

Like many internet users, you probably already know that the Adobe Flash Player is one of the least secure plugins in the web. It has been the subject of so many zero-day vulnerabilities that Adobe has to release security patches every now and then to protect its users from cybercriminal attacks.

With these in mind, you might have decided that the best way to protect yourself is to disable Flash Player in your computer. Fortunately, this isn’t difficult to do. If you have a Windows 10 computer, you can disable Flash by taking the following steps:

If you’re using Microsoft Edge:

1. Open the Edge browser.

2. Click on the “More” button. It looks like three dots in a row and is located on the upper right part of the screen.

3. Click on “Settings”.

4. Scroll down to find “View advanced settings”. Click on it.

5. Find the “Use Adobe Flash Player” section. Underneath it, you’ll find a switch that toggles between “Off” and “On”. Click the switch so it shows “Off”.

***It’s important to note that Flash Player will be automatically disabled in the upcoming Windows 10 Creators Update. When it arrives, Microsoft Edge will automatically show sites in HTML5 if they support this markup language. If they don’t, Edge will show a prompt asking you whether you want to see the Flash-based content or not. If you want to work around this default, take the steps above but choose “On” in the fifth step.

If you’re using Internet Explorer:

1. Open Internet Explorer

2. Click on the “Tools” button. It looks like a cogwheel and is located on the upper right portion of the screen.

3. Choose “Manage add-ons”.

4. Click on “Shockwave Flash Object”.

5. Click on the “Disable” button on the lower right corner of the screen. The button should now show “Enable”.

6. Click on the “Close” button underneath the “Enable” button”.

Final Thoughts

Disabling the Adobe Flash Player is a great way to avoid the vulnerabilities that come along with it. If you decide to continue using it (either on Windows 10 or on other systems), make sure to download the security patches that Adobe provides to keep your computer safe from attacks.