Firefox is to start reminding users to upgrade third-party plugins in a bid to improve the security and reliability of the browser.
Mozilla is kicking off with reminders to upgrade Adobe Flash Player, which has been held responsible for a series of malware attacks. Up to 80% of Flash Player users are running on an outdated version of the plugin, and the aging software is more than just a security risk according to Mozilla.
“Old versions of plugins can cause crashes and other stability problems, and can also be a significant security risk,” writes Mozilla’s Jonathan Nightingale on the Mozilla Security Blog.
Users running an outdated version of the Flash Player will be met with a warning tab, similar to that shown when you’ve just upgraded to a new version of the browser. The tab will state: “You should update Adobe Flash right now”, and will direct users to Adobe’s website to download the update.
Mozilla plans to broaden the scheme to cover other plugins in future versions of the browser. “Firefox 3.6 will check for newer versions of plugins just like we check for newer versions of Firefox or extensions,” the company adds in the blog comments. “If it sees that you have one that’s out of date, you’ll be sent to that page.”
Updating Firefox has become something of a hot topic for Mozilla recently. The company admitted last month that poor protection of people’s bookmarks (aka porn collection) put people off upgrading to Firefox 3.
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