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Many are looking for an alternative to Adobe Flash Player, as support for the software was discontinued in 2021. We now explain what you need to consider and which plug-in you can use instead.
Alternatives to Adobe Flash Player
On 31 December 2020, support for the Adobe Flash Player ended.
- Since then, it is no longer possible to use the Flash Player in browsers such as Firefox or Google Chrome.
- The reason for the discontinuation is the many security vulnerabilities that Flash Player has had in recent years. This can allow harmful software to get onto your PC. Even Adobe advises against the use of the plug-in and will block the execution of the tool from the end of support.
- Also, the Adobe Flash Player is considered obsolete, as almost all websites do without Flash content.
- Instead, many major platforms such as YouTube rely on HTML5. All current browsers support this format, so you don’t have to install HTML5 afterwards.
- As an alternative to the Flash Player, you can use a browser extension, which we introduce in the second chapter. This will allow you to run Flash content on websites even after 31 December 2020.
Play Flash content – this browser extension makes it possible
If you come across websites on the Internet that provide Flash content, you can still play it with a browser extension.
- Download the add-on Ruffle, which is available for Firefox and Google Chrome, and follow the instructions described in the article.
- The tool is a kind of emulator that automatically displays Flash content. This means that, unlike the Adobe Flash Player, there are not many security gaps here. You can therefore use the extension without hesitation.
- Ruffle is still under development. So far, the developers are only providing nightly build versions of the extension. It is therefore possible that not all websites will work without problems at the beginning.
