Java, Flash, and Silverlight Are Digital Sinking Ships

There’s something that we’ve been keeping from you for a while. It’s not like we haven’t been wanting to tell you, but it’s been tough to really find a good way to put it. Enough is enough, though, and we’re going to get this off our chest and just rip the band-aid and say it –

Uninstall Java, Adobe Flash, and Microsoft Silverlight. Ah, that feels so much better!

We wrote an article a few months back kind of suggesting it, but now we’re just straight up telling you to do it. Why? Simply, they pose a security risk to your computer. Did you know that the reason that these programs have constant updates isn’t necessarily to add in functionality, but rather to cover up the seemingly endless loopholes and exploits? That’s right, they are basically digital sinking ships. One hole is patched and another two are discovered. Hackers and virus authors have been using these exploits to deploy whatever nastiness they want on your computers.

So why the delay with telling you this? Frankly, these programs have been crucial on many websites and functionality. If you didn’t have these programs installed (and many times updated), you couldn’t use particular sites. It isn’t the case so much any longer as most major websites have used the power of HTML5 to run their sites. This means that you don’t have to put your computer as risk just to use a website.

If a website that you use still requires Java, Flash, or Silverlight, it’s time to really think if that website is important enough to possible compromise the security of your computer.

Now, if it’s a website that you absolutely need or like to use, then of course keep the required program(s) installed. Just make sure to keep it up to date – no more putting off the updates!

To finish this post, we’re proud to announce that we’ve integrated removing these pieces of software from computers coming into our shop with our Tune Up and Tune Up & Virus Removal services. We’re no longer going to have our customers play the constant game of catch-up and instead trim the fat from their PCs.

FYI – some web browsers have integrated Flash within them. This is a good thing and will help with security tremendously.