Adobe has released a patch to fix the recent Flash exploits that resulted in the attack of Hacking Team, and Mozilla has re-enabled Flash on Firefox after disabling it by default for security concerns.
A few days ago we were notified of two vulnerabilities within the Flash Player that could potentially allow an attacker to take control of an affected system, Adobe wrote in the official press release. Upon investigation, we confirmed and fixed the issues, and took steps to ensure that this class of attack cannot be used as a future attack vector.
These exploits resulted in the high-profile cyber attack on Hacking Team, which revealed that the surveillance company was working with repressive governments, contradicting statements that said otherwise.
Citing security concerns, Mozilla disabled Flash by default on its browser Firefox on Monday, but later re-enabled Flash after the patch was released. Mozilla advises users to only enable Flash for trusted websites, as attackers can use the security flaws in Flash to run malicious software on your computer to gain access on your system.
Facebook chief security officer Alex Stamos recently called for the death of flash so that infrastructures could turn to more secure alternatives.
Chad Weiner, director of product management of Mozilla, told SiliconBeat in a statement that while Mozilla is glad Adobe fixed the vulnerabilities, Mozilla will continue to work with developers to encourage adoption of safer and more stable technologies, such as HTML5 and Javascript, and we look forward to helping drive that conversation.
Photo: Exterior view of Adobe Systems headquarters in San Jose. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)
