AMAZON has reportedly pulled one of its own popular Fire TV Stick features.
The free bonus tool allows users to control their device like the main controller.
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It was particularly ideal for those who had lost their physical Amazon Fire TV Stick remote and didn’t want to pay for a new one.
Viewers also loved the virtual keyboard element which made it a lot easier to type out usernames and other terms.
There is an app that can do all this – which continues to work as normal – but the web-based alternative was good for those who didn’t want to install yet another app on their phone taking up more space.
Unlike the Fire TV app, this one you could just scan a QR code and control your kit from a web browser.
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It was only added last month.
But the online retailer and tech firm has suddenly decided to withdraw the service over a security concern, according to AFTVNews.
When users attempt to access the service, it returns an “under maintenance” error message.
Security experts apparently warned Amazon that the feature made it too too easy for hackers to take control of someone else’s Fire TV.
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As the tool doesn’t require users to be on the same network as the Fire TV, it could allow fraudsters to install dangerous and malicious apps.
Of course, a hacker would have to physically see the QR code on your TV screen to pull this off.
Amazon Fire TV Stick owners can unlock 400 live channels for free – plus 40,000 movies and TV shows
But all is not lost as Amazon is said to be working on fixing the issue and bringing the tool back at some point.
In a statement issued to AFTVNews, the company is quoted as saying: “We appreciate the work of independent researchers to help bring issues to our attention.
“While we’re still reviewing this research, we immediately disabled the QR feature at issue for Fire TV customers, which fully mitigates the scenario described by the researchers.
“We look forward to bringing this feature back for customers soon.”
It’s not the first change Amazon Fire TV Stick owners have had to contend with lately.
Last week, a new popup started to appear for banned apps.
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