SRoss said

I have Adobe Flash Player version 16.0.0.305, yet when I go to some sites I told I need to update my Adobe Flash. I tried doing this and I get the same message. This problem started Friday.

This happened to me last week and I resolved it by completely uninstalling Flash using the uninstaller download on their site (https://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/uninstall-flash-player-windows.html) and then doing a fresh install of the latest version (https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/)

Tried this solution and I'm still getting the same message.

OK, I've upgraded to Adobe Flash 17.0.0.134 and I'm still getting the same problem. Any chance the developers at Mozilla or Adobe will get off their asses and fix their software, or should I just switch to Chrome?

Sometimes a problem with Firefox may be a result of malware installed on your computer, that you may not be aware of.

You can try these free programs to scan for malware, which work with your existing antivirus software:

• Microsoft Safety Scanner
• MalwareBytes' Anti-Malware
• Anti-Rootkit Utility - TDSSKiller
• AdwCleaner (for more info, see this alternate AdwCleaner download page)
• Hitman Pro
• ESET Online Scanner

Microsoft Security Essentials is a good permanent antivirus for Windows 7/Vista/XP if you don't already have one. Windows 8 has antivirus built-in already.

Further information can be found in the Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware article.

Did this fix your problems? Please report back to us!

SRoss, post some links to the websites that are telling you your Flash is old. I want to check them out for myself. Also you have 2 old versions of Shockwave Director installed together. You should uninstall those and get the latest from: https://get.adobe.com/shockwave/

Your 2 old versions: Adobe Shockwave for Director Netscape plug-in, version 12.1.3.153 Adobe Shockwave for Director Netscape plug-in, version 12.0.2.122

The latest version is 12.1.7.157.

I have a feeling that when you updated Flash it didn't remove the old 16.0 version. It's supposed to do that automatically while installing the latest version.

Sometimes website present erroneous messages about the Flash plugin because their script didn't work and they just assume it's the version...

In case one of your extensions is involved, could you test the page in Firefox's Safe Mode? That's a standard diagnostic tool to deactivate extensions and some advanced features of Firefox. More info: Diagnose Firefox issues using Troubleshoot Mode.

You can restart Firefox in Safe Mode using either:

• "3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Restart with Add-ons Disabled
• Help menu > Restart with Add-ons Disabled

Not all add-ons are disabled: Flash and other plugins still run

After Firefox shuts down, a small dialog should appear. Click "Start in Safe Mode" (not Reset).

Any difference?

jscher2000 said

Sometimes website present erroneous messages about the Flash plugin because their script didn't work and they just assume it's the version... In case one of your extensions is involved, could you test the page in Firefox's Safe Mode? That's a standard diagnostic tool to deactivate extensions and some advanced features of Firefox. More info: Diagnose Firefox issues using Troubleshoot Mode. You can restart Firefox in Safe Mode using either:

• "3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Restart with Add-ons Disabled
• Help menu > Restart with Add-ons Disabled

Not all add-ons are disabled: Flash and other plugins still run After Firefox shuts down, a small dialog should appear. Click "Start in Safe Mode" (not Reset). Any difference?

Nope no difference.

Noah_SUMO said

SRoss, post some links to the websites that are telling you your Flash is old. I want to check them out for myself. Also you have 2 old versions of Shockwave Director installed together. You should uninstall those and get the latest from: https://get.adobe.com/shockwave/ Your 2 old versions: Adobe Shockwave for Director Netscape plug-in, version 12.1.3.153 Adobe Shockwave for Director Netscape plug-in, version 12.0.2.122 The latest version is 12.1.7.157. I have a feeling that when you updated Flash it didn't remove the old 16.0 version. It's supposed to do that automatically while installing the latest version.

The sites in question were:

http://www.nutaku.net/games/lord-of-valkyrie/play/ http://www.aq.com/play-now/ and http://www.gogoanime.com/

These are the ones I know about so far.

I tried uninstalling Shockwave Director and installing the new version and it didn't solve the problem.

With this link, I get a notification immediately to activate Flash and then the login form loads: http://www.aq.com/play-now/

If you open that link in a new private window (Ctrl+Shift+p) -- which won't have access to your cached files or cookies -- do you get the login screen like I do or the same error?

Budiee93 said

Sometimes a problem with Firefox may be a result of malware installed on your computer, that you may not be aware of. You can try these free programs to scan for malware, which work with your existing antivirus software:

• Microsoft Safety Scanner
• MalwareBytes' Anti-Malware
• Anti-Rootkit Utility - TDSSKiller
• AdwCleaner (for more info, see this alternate AdwCleaner download page)
• Hitman Pro
• ESET Online Scanner

Microsoft Security Essentials is a good permanent antivirus for Windows 7/Vista/XP if you don't already have one. Windows 8 has antivirus built-in already. Further information can be found in the Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware article. Did this fix your problems? Please report back to us!

Nope didn't fix the problem.

jscher2000 said

With this link, I get a notification immediately to activate Flash and then the login form loads: http://www.aq.com/play-now/ If you open that link in a new private window (Ctrl+Shift+p) -- which won't have access to your cached files or cookies -- do you get the login screen like I do or the same error?

I get the same error.

Sorry, this was posted in the wrong thread. Never mind.

Please ignore that last reply, I meant to post it in a different tab.

If you do global search on your system for files whose names start with NPSWF32 can you find older Flash DLL files in unexpected locations that Adobe's uninstaller might have missed?

If you don't already have Windows XP set to show you system and hidden files and folders, you may need to allow that. This support article has the steps:

• http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/win_fcab_show_file_extensions.mspx