You’ve probably seen your own share of Flash Player pop up notifications all over the internet, asking you to either install a Flash Player or update the ones installed on your device. However, most of us know that they’re all fake.
Most websites no longer use Flash and applications have long moved on to a different technology. Though there are still apps, such as Adobe, that uses Flash, it has already announced that it is phasing out this technology and will replace it with a more reliable one. So using Flash these days is already outdated.
What is InstallFlashPlayer.exe
InstallFlashPlayer.exe is an Adobe Flash Player installer and uninstaller process that usually runs in the background. The Adobe Flash Player is a piece of software used for streaming video and audio, viewing multimedia, and Rich Internet Applications, either on a computer web browser or on supported mobile devices. Flash Player can open SWF files that are created by the Adobe Flex, the Adobe Flash authoring tool, or other Macromedia and third-party tools.
Adobe Flash Player is the software responsible for delivering high-impact and rich web content. Designs, application user interfaces, and animations are deployed using Flash technology.
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The legitimate InstallFlashPlayer.exe is usually found in this directory:
C:\users\user\appdata\local\temp\{d5ae2122-08e1-45c4-8148-12d3413f0c1a}\installflashplayer.exe
However, not all InstallFlashPlayer.exe you see on your computer are legitimate processes. In most cases, the InstallFlashPlayer.exe that you see is malware. Should InstallFlashPlayer.exe be removed? If it is malware, you need to remove it immediately.
Is InstallFlashPlayer.exe a Virus?
InstallFlashPlayer.exe is not a virus. It is a dropper type of Trojan horse that uses different malicious processes to install different malware on the user’s computer. The malware reportedly uses a fake Flash Player installation process which is running active under Windows Task Manager. This malware was designed to connect to remote hosts and download various types of viruses on the affected computers.
The main method of distribution used by this malware is through fake flash player installers. These infected files can land on your computer when you click adware or other ad-supported apps on your computer. One of the main ways of getting users to download the InstallFlashPlayer.exe is to convince users that their Flash Player needs to be updated.
Here are some of the common messages that you might have encountered:
- Adobe Flash Player is out of date!
The version of “Adobe Flash Player” on your system does not include the latest security updates and has been blocked. To continue using “Adobe Flash Player”, download an updated version.
- Adobe Flash Player Update
Install Adobe Flash Player and enjoy the largest database for:
Music Albums with user-friendly interface
All Song Formats with easy access
Videos Library leading video codec library
- Latest version of Adobe Flash Player is required to encode and/or decode (Play) audio files in high quality.
Click here to update for latest version.
Software update
When the InstallFlashPlayer.exe infects your computer, your computer is subjected to dangers, such as:
- Tracking cookies to be added to your browser in order to obtain private information and send it to third-parties.
- Monitoring your network activity and obtaining your browsing history.
- Slowing down your web browser and possibly affecting your PC’s performance.
- Generates various pop-up advertisements that may intrude on your PC’s normal work.
- May highlight words from the sites you visit that lead to advertised sites.
- May change your web browser’s settings.
How to Remove InstallFlashPlayer.exe?
If your computer has been infected by the InstallFlashPlayer.exe malware, it is important to delete it from your computer as soon as possible. Make sure to uninstall the malicious app using your anti-malware software and delete all components of the malware using a PC cleaning app. InstallFlashPlayer.exe is so persistent that it will just keep coming back if it is not completely eradicated.
If you’re not sure what to do to completely remove InstallFlashPlayer.exe from your computer, you can follow our malware removal guide to make sure you don’t miss anything.