Firefox download history shows virus file and....

What was the popup message displayed when you hovered over it?

Denis

I cannot help.

I cannot force the entry shown in your diagram [I tried a couple of malware test files but they get dealt with after download by Defender, Firefox just lets them through].

The only Firefox article I have on the subject is a bit old - Enhancing Download Protection in Firefox - Mozilla Security Blog and its illustrations do not match yours.


Sorry,
Denis

I have found a current Firefox article and it matches your diagram.
Where to find and manage downloaded files in Firefox - MozillaSupport
They say that right-clicking on the red ! icon provides an option to download despite the warning.
So that, I think, confirms that the malware file was not downloaded to your computer despite your icon not working as they describe.

I appreciate that this only resolves one of your concerns.
You still want to clear the download list.
And you have already explained that the Clear downloads function did not work for you.




Denis

I was not suggesting that you clear all browser history but merely that you press Ctrl-J and use its Clear downloads item.

But if clearing all history is giving you problems, I don't know enough about Firefox to know how you might avoid having to reinstall it.
Ghot might be able to help you as he knows Firefox very well indeed.

@Ghot - Mike, this OP is having problems trying to remove an entry from the Firefox downloads list and, in the course of addressing this problem, has discovered that clearing the whole history is stopping Firefox working at all until the next reboot.


Denis

Not sure if this will help but i had this in my notes from awhile ago, might be worth a try ! Go to the support page for your PC on the manufacturers website, then from there, download and re-install Synaptics Smart Audio HD, restart your PC to see if that resolves this error popup.