How do I REMOVE unasked for plugins?
I have found software has secretly installed Firefox plugins (NOT ACCEPTABLE), but Firefox does not display a REMOVE option (ALSO NOT ACCEPTABLE). So may I ask, how do I REMOVE those plugins?
All Replies (10)
Can you describe which Plugins were installed ??
Perform the suggestions mentioned in the following article:
Check and tell if its working.
If you would like to look at the attached images. you will see that I have 6 plugins, but only 1 is displayed by about:plugins. How do I remove the others?
You can possibly Remove them by opening their adjacent Softwares and Removing their Firefox Plugins from their settings..
see this article -> http://kb.mozillazine.org/Issues_related_to_plugins
Check and tell if its working.
Modified
if you type about:plugins in the location bar you can see all plugins, then see the name (for example npqtplugin7.dll for QuickTime Plug-in 7.7) then go to -probably to- C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\plugins and with right-click on mouse choose delete.
BUT before delete it, backup plugins, just in case they need to be restored at a later time.
Some plugins it is not visible there, but in Windows Registry, from regedit go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\MozillaPlugins and you can delete the key from there.
BUT before do it, export the Registry key first, for the ability to restore the setting at a later time.
for me leave it as it is, don't take the risk to delete it.
thank you
Modified
Firefox does not have a Remove option for Plugins simply because they are not installed in Firefox like Extensions and Themes are for example.
The reason why only Shockwave Flash 11.2 is listed in your about:plugins is because you have told Firefox to not make use of the other Plugins it has detected and made use of.
Plug-ins are external programs. Firefox checks for plug-ins in specific folders and registry keys. If they're found, they're made available to you inside the browser.
Normally, they're removed from the respective entry in Control Panel's “Uninstall a program” section. Many times however, they're bundled with other software and cannot be removed without removing that particular software as well.
Step-by-step instructions for manually removing plug-ins can be found in the following article, in the “Manually uninstalling a plugin” section.
Notes
- about:plugins only displays enabled plug-ins.
- Disabled plug-ins are not used by Firefox, so it may not be worth the effort to perform a manual removal.
Yes, the plugins arent really governed by Firefox, theyre external programs so they are on the responsibility of the people that made the plugin in question.
Disabling the plugin "uninstalls" it from Firefox.
ffxsf wrote: Disabling the plugin "uninstalls" it from Firefox.
Actually no as disabling just tells Firefox to not make use of that plugin as you can then Enable use of it again when you want to. If Disable actually meant it was uninstalled, then there would not be a Enable button/context menu feature.
Plugins should not be enabled by default in the first place, or should be confirmed by the PC owner. Come on guys - basics of security here! Pull your fingers out and add in this simple piece of code to resolve the issue.
You can locate the plugin yourself, delete it and replace it with an empty text file - this works for me. You may also need to change the security on the file so that any wouldbe updaters can't!
Hi mandelbrot, the devs took a step in that direction by prompting user to enable extensions installed externally to Firefox. Maybe plugins will be next?
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