A step towards a safer web!
Google is planning to fully block Flash content from automatically running in Chrome browser this year. Instead, it will apply the click-to-play option when it comes to Flash to be displayed.
At the moment, Chrome is the most popular web browser globally, and the decisions it makes towards its functionality and support have huge consequences for its millions of users worldwide.
Google has confirmed that, by the end of this year, it plans to set HTML5 as the default standard in Chrome, this way limiting Flash support to the minimum. The company calls this new plan “HTML5 by Default”.
With the release of this update, Adobe’s Flash Player will run automatically only on the top 10 whitelisted domains, that still rely on it. The list will include major websites like YouTube.com, Facebook.com, Mail.ru and Amazon.com. However, after a further year, this “whitelist” will expire, since these websites will supposedly no longer require Flash to run.
On all the other websites that offer it, HTML5 will be displayed by default. In case it is not available, users will be asked for permission of Flash to be used. A notification at the top of the page will appear when users visit the site for the first time. This will give them the option of running or declining the Flash on the website. The selection will be remembered automatically so they don’t need to choose it every time they visit the page again.
This move by Google is another step towards a safer web experience. The company has been cutting the Flash activities in a number of ways over the recent years. This is yet another move that is trying to minimize the negative effects on web performance and security issues, related to Flash applications. Even now, Chrome has the ability to stop non-essential Flash content such as ads, in order to save up battery life and prevent malware attempts.
Since it emerged, HTML5 is providing more integrated media experience
With its faster load times and lower power consumption, HTML5 has been showing the next generation of media displaying abilities. Eliminating the Flash, on the other hand, would save up users from the vulnerabilities of the Flash content and the variety of threats it is exposed to.
It seems that Google is not the only one to make such a major move. Microsoft Edge and Firefox are also working on shifting from Flash. Could the web become a safer place after this shift takes place?
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