content: Java? Maybe? Depends. Flash? Maybe? Depends. The truth is there's no way for any of us to honestly tell you because we don't know your habits. It's possible you could do without both of them, or one of them. It's also possible you need both of them. /u/ooli is offering dangerous advice. Do so at your own peril... Java and Adobe Acrobat are common vectors for infections right now. Personally I wish I could have Java just update itself in the background and never tell me. Updates, more often than not, have security fixes. They aren't just "unnecessary" things that programmers do because they are bored. Programmers find bugs of varying kinds and squish them. Some bugs enhance stability, some enhance efficiency, some remove vulnerabilities. Some updates add new "features". Sometimes you, as a user, will never know of this feature because it's meant for a developer. Sometimes it's meant for users but probably not you -- more like the business you that uses it in different ways beyond simply reading a PDF document not caring about OCR or data input or submission. Personally, I disable all extensions and require my browser to explicitly ask me permission to run them. By doing this I just run the one item I want cough porn cough. The easiest answer I can give you: Remove them and if you need them then add them back? It'll cost you time but that's the only way to know.