Adobe Flash Security Update Tries to Install McAfee Adware

[Spacecadet]

Back to Adobe... I uninstallaed adobe acrobat reader a few weeks ago and I've been using foxit reader instead.
Much much smaller footprint on my hard drive and it works perfectly and quicker than the adobe offering.

[Clippy]

AV products like McAfee and Nortons are a bitch to completely remove.

Would suggest you download the McAfee Removal Tool and run that after you have uninstalled McAfee via Add/Remove Programs.

With regards the flash update, I've installed this on 2 PC's now and each time there has been no McAfee tick box.

Weird - anyone else have that?

[Spacecadet]

With regards the flash update, I've installed this on 2 PC's now and each time there has been no McAfee tick box.

Weird - anyone else have that?

I think it's only the web update that does it. The auto update process seems to be mcafee free

[Clippy]

I think it's only the web update that does it. The auto update process seems to be mcafee free

Cool - thought I may have missed it.

[xoggoth]

Useful thread. Might use that security essentials rather than renew my subscription to Bullguard when it expires. Always love to save money me.

[OwlHoot]

Kaperski seems pretty good, and doesn't thrash the system trying to scan my millions of files.

The most annoying thing about Norton was the stupid way it would *ask* before removing a virus, as if the virus might be a cherished possession I'd be heartbroken to lose!

(and then, to cap it all, once one clicked the removal option, more often than not Norton was unable to remove it!! mad )

[TimberWolf]

Ah, McAfee appears to have gone without a struggle. I did just spend an hour trying to get Windows Defender working though, but late in the day I discovered that Microsoft Security Essentials (which I have installed now) turns it off, and does a pretty good job of not allowing it be turned on too. Windows Defender and Microsoft Security Essentials. D'oh!

[Mich the Tester]

Does anyone know what exactly the Windows Malicious Software tool does?

Yes. It eats internal memory and gives you nothing in return.

A bit like McAfee.

[Sysman]

Just for the record I updated Flash on my Mac yesterday, and no offers of extra software were seen.

I did have to search a bit to find out how to check for the current version installed. One would have thought that the Adobe site would have come high in Google, but a site belonging to a Bob came #1

Visit www.adobe.com/software/flash/about/ to check your current version of Flash. Note that you need to enable both JavaScript and Flash for that page to work.

[NickFitz]

Just for the record I updated Flash on my Mac yesterday, and no offers of extra software were seen.

I just tried their download page; for Safari Mac it offered nothing extra. Using Safari's User Agent switcher, I pretended to be on IE (6,7,8, all Windows of course) and it offered the Google toolbar (with installation enabled by default). Pretending to be Firefox on Windows, it offered the McAfee thingy (again, installation enabled by default). Pretending to be Opera on Windows and Safari on Windows, it offered nothing.

I tried it several times for each, and it seems that it's only Firefox users who get the McAfee thingy thrust at them for some strange reason