Is anyone getting the "An Install of Flash Player Pro is Recommended” popup? It seems to be adware. Webroot didn't pick it up and no of the Google Chrome (current browser) extensions, besides Webroot show up in the browser history. I found one web site that says that it is an adware, but that web site wants me to buy an adware program. Anyway, does anyone have some good information?
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Hi OlyBrian
Welcome to the Community Forums.
You are quite correct as Flash Player Pro virus is a fake application, which mimics a reputable program Adobe Flash Player...and is MOST CERTAINLY NOT required as the ad tries to make out.
It is what we on the Community refer to as a PUA. (Potentially Unwanted Application)These are very annoying at best in that they cause pop-us, redirect your browser home page, and other behavior that may slow down the computer and direct ads your way, but they are not actually doing anything bad like damaging files or stealing information. Often they are installed intentionally by you the user as browser add-ons for various tasks such as quick search tools.. but they also come with the result of added annoying pop-ups and ads. Other times they 'piggy back' with other software that you installed, or try to 'sneak' onto your system entirely.
There are some who would disagree with this view and on the Flash Player Pro website it states "Flash Player Pro is a handy flash tool kit designed to play and manage Macromedia..." but the context is whether you really want it on your system and, if not, then how it got there in the first place. You can try to see if there is an uninstaller available and run it...and if that fails then proceed with the rest of advice below.
WSA does detect and remove many PUA's, and more are being added, but WSA does not detect all of them. A simple browser add-on with PUA behavior that is easy to identify and easy to remove is not likely to be detected and removed by WSA. Those that are intentionally difficult to locate and remove are. Please see THIS LINK for more information regarding Webroot's stance on these annoying programs.
For those that are not detected by WSA, please see this KB Article. It has some easy to follow directions on locating and removing PUA's. You may also want to submit a Trouble Ticket, especially if you cannot remove it easily from the directions in the KB Article.
For those that ARE detected by WSA, but cannot be removed automatically, you can submit a Trouble Ticket. Webroot Support will help you get these annoying 'crapware' off your computer at no extra charge, and the additional examples may help to better automatic removal of that particular PUA for all users in the future.
To make sure that your WSA is checking for PUA's with the best proficiently, it sometimes helps to reset the PUA detection within WSA's settings. For PUA's that had previously been scanned and determined to be OK, but have since been added to detection/removal, you may want to complete the following steps:
In summary take it steady and see if it can be removed normally like any other program you no longer want. If so then all well and good...if not then hopefully you have all the guidance that you need to deal with it.
Regards, Baldrick
Welcome to the Community Forums.
You are quite correct as Flash Player Pro virus is a fake application, which mimics a reputable program Adobe Flash Player...and is MOST CERTAINLY NOT required as the ad tries to make out.
It is what we on the Community refer to as a PUA. (Potentially Unwanted Application)These are very annoying at best in that they cause pop-us, redirect your browser home page, and other behavior that may slow down the computer and direct ads your way, but they are not actually doing anything bad like damaging files or stealing information. Often they are installed intentionally by you the user as browser add-ons for various tasks such as quick search tools.. but they also come with the result of added annoying pop-ups and ads. Other times they 'piggy back' with other software that you installed, or try to 'sneak' onto your system entirely.
There are some who would disagree with this view and on the Flash Player Pro website it states "Flash Player Pro is a handy flash tool kit designed to play and manage Macromedia..." but the context is whether you really want it on your system and, if not, then how it got there in the first place. You can try to see if there is an uninstaller available and run it...and if that fails then proceed with the rest of advice below.
WSA does detect and remove many PUA's, and more are being added, but WSA does not detect all of them. A simple browser add-on with PUA behavior that is easy to identify and easy to remove is not likely to be detected and removed by WSA. Those that are intentionally difficult to locate and remove are. Please see THIS LINK for more information regarding Webroot's stance on these annoying programs.
For those that are not detected by WSA, please see this KB Article. It has some easy to follow directions on locating and removing PUA's. You may also want to submit a Trouble Ticket, especially if you cannot remove it easily from the directions in the KB Article.
For those that ARE detected by WSA, but cannot be removed automatically, you can submit a Trouble Ticket. Webroot Support will help you get these annoying 'crapware' off your computer at no extra charge, and the additional examples may help to better automatic removal of that particular PUA for all users in the future.
To make sure that your WSA is checking for PUA's with the best proficiently, it sometimes helps to reset the PUA detection within WSA's settings. For PUA's that had previously been scanned and determined to be OK, but have since been added to detection/removal, you may want to complete the following steps:
- Open Webroot SecureAnywhere
- Click on ‘Advanced Settings’ from the top right
- Select ‘Scan Settings’ from the left side
- Unselect the option “Detect Potentially Unwanted Applications”
- Click on the Save button (you may have to enter in a CAPTCHA)
- Reselect the option to “Detect Potentially Unwanted Applications”
- Click on the Save button
- Run another scan with Webroot and remove any items that get detected.
In summary take it steady and see if it can be removed normally like any other program you no longer want. If so then all well and good...if not then hopefully you have all the guidance that you need to deal with it.
Regards, Baldrick
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