Amazon Fire TV Stick warning as popular streaming device loses important feature

Dave Snelling & Aaron Morris
·2-min read
Amazon Fire TV Sticks just lost an incredibly handy feature
Amazon Fire TV Sticks just lost an incredibly handy feature -Credit:PA


Amazon has confirmed that it has temporarily removed a popular feature from Fire TV Sticks, following the discovery of a security glitch.

If you've recently found that the handy virtual remote feature is missing, it's due to security experts uncovering a concerning error with the tool.

Until the block was rolled out, Amazon Fire users could scan a QR code and control their streaming device using their mobile phone or tablet. The function was perfect for people who had misplaced their remote, while it also made typing faster through the use of a keyboard.

But as spotted by the team at AFTVnews, the feature was recently disabled after security experts discovered that the QR code could allow hackers to install apps on Fire devices unbeknownst to the device owner. While it is unclear if anyone was affected by the error, Amazon decided to pull the plug on the feature while making it safe.

The Mirror reports that the security blunder is partly due to the fact that a device scanning the QR code does not need to be on the same Wi-Fi as the Fire Stick, and you don't need to log into an Amazon account to do it either. If you try to scan a QR code to use your phone as an input at present, a message reads: "This page is currently down for scheduled maintenance. Please check back later."

Amazon told AFTVnews: "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."

The move looks to be temporary as Amazon work to secure the feature.

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest stories

  • Tesla to cut hundreds more jobs in Musk cost push: report

    Tesla plans hundreds of additional job cuts beyond a recent company-wide layoff as it cracks down on costs in a tough electric vehicle market, according to a US media report.Tesla last week reported a 55 percent drop in quarterly earnings to $1.1 billion, reflecting a decline in EV sales in a market with intensifying competition.

  • Musk disbands Tesla EV charging team, leaving customers in the dark

    DETROIT (Reuters) -Elon Musk's abrupt decision to lay off employees who ran Tesla's electric vehicle charging business blindsided automakers gearing up to equip new EVs for customers to use the Tesla Supercharger network, industry officials and analysts said on Tuesday. For now, General Motors, Ford and other automakers which struck deals last year to give customers access to the network said they are not changing their plans. Tesla's decision to open its network to rival EV manufacturers was hailed by U.S. President Joe Biden, and opened the door for Tesla to get federal subsidies to expand the reach of its North American Charging Standard (NACS) system.

  • This London borough has the most mobile phone thefts

    Metropolitan Police data highlights boroughs with the highest number of incidents

  • People Are Sharing Things That Were Totally Normal To Have Or Do 10 Years Ago, But Would Be Strange Today

    RIP to the days of running out to Best Buy on Tuesdays because you needed the newest DVD.

  • Warning to mobile users as thousands of phones will no longer work this year

    The 3G switch off will impact Tesco Mobile, Sky Mobile and Virgin Mobile, who use the O2 network, and iD Mobile and Smarty who use the Three network

  • Apple’s promised AI plan is ‘all that matters’, analysts say, as it tries to play catch up with Big Tech rivals

    Investors are putting intense pressure on Apple to reveal its AI roadmap as competitors widen their lead with a deluge of new AI products.

  • Martin Lewis issues £144 warning to Sky, BT, Virgin Media, TalkTalk customers and says 'frankly'

    The Martin Lewis Money Show star, who has stints on Good Morning Britain, This Morning and the Martin Lewis Money Show, spoke out on his latest podcast episode.

  • Boston Dynamics Shows Off Robodog With Fur

    Robo-Bluey Robotics company Boston Dynamics has released a video of its Spot Mini robot dog dressed up in a bedazzled suit of fur, a "custom costume" meant to "explore the intersections of robotics, art, and entertainment." Put differently, the company's famed robot dog has been turned from a dystopian four-legged machine into a terrifying marionette […]

  • XBOX fans will notice £40 extra in bank accounts after Microsoft move

    The price of the Xbox Series X seems to be dropping and could hint at a new console on the way, according to gaming experts.

  • Qualcomm Gives Solid Outlook in Sign of Smartphone Recovery

    (Bloomberg) -- Qualcomm Inc., the world’s biggest seller of smartphone processors, gave an upbeat forecast for sales and profit in the current period, suggesting demand for handsets is increasing after a two-year slump.Most Read from BloombergUS and Saudis Near Defense Pact Meant to Reshape Middle EastTesla Axes Supercharger Team in Blow to Broader EV MarketJerome Powell Offered Markets a Reprieve. It Vanished in a BlinkNYPD Arrests Over 300 Protesters in Crackdown on College CampusesThe Ozempic

  • Google and Apple now threatened by the US antitrust laws helped build their technology empires

    The U.S. Justice Department's double-barreled antitrust attack on Google's dominant search and Apple's trendsetting iPhone is reviving memories of the epic battle that hobbled Microsoft before it roared back to yet again become the world's most valuable company. The parallels to the Justice Department's landmark antitrust case in 1998 could provide a window into the potential breakthroughs that could be unleashed if regulators succeed in their attempts to crack down on Google and Apple.

  • Qualcomm forecast beats estimates as AI drives chip sales in China

    (Reuters) -Qualcomm on Wednesday forecast quarterly sales and adjusted profit above Wall Street expectations, driven by selling more and pricier chips into Android smartphones with artificial-intelligence features. After a smartphone slump last year, Qualcomm said that China's Android market - which has become critical to the company - has started to pick up, with consumers there shifting toward purchasing higher-priced devices that can accommodate AI chatbots. Qualcomm shares were up 4% in after-hours trading.

  • Screenshots suggest TikTok is circumventing Apple App Store commissions

    TikTok may be routing around the App Store to save money on commissions. According to new findings, the ByteDance-owned social video app is presenting some of its users with a link to a website for purchasing the coins used for tipping digital creators. Typically, these coins are bought via in-app purchase, which requires a 30% commission paid to Apple.

  • Why is BT axing its Phone Book Online digital directory?

    This is BT’s second withdrawal of a service this year as in March the last copies of its printed phone directory went out

  • Chinese tech giant Huawei profit surges 564%, biting into Apple sales

    Tech giant Huawei's first-quarter profits surged over fivefold year-on-year, a company filing showed Tuesday, as the US-sanctioned firm continues a rebound and bit into competitor Apple's sales in China.Net profit in the January-March period amounted to $2.7 billion, up 564 percent from the first quarter of last year, according to a results filing by Huawei's holding company on an official website and confirmed by a representative of the firm.

  • 27 Times Someone Completely Messed Up A Major Family Event In A Movie

    Family gatherings, events, trips, and others can get messed up quite easily by one person. When it comes to movies that involve family gatherings of any kind, whether it be while some family members are traveling together, getting together for the holidays, or some other event, it can only be a matter of time before something goes wrong. Usually, it's because of one person that begins a cascading effect that turns said family gathering upside down.

  • BT under fire after Digital Voice 'cuts off' landline and internet

    The BT customer switched to the service and has now been left WITHOUT internet - or a working phone - after the move from the high-profile telecoms giant.

  • The best MacBooks of 2024, tried and tested by an expert – which should you buy?

    Apple’s MacBook range is extensive, which is somewhat of a double-edged sword. It means there is a MacBook out there for everyone, but it can also be difficult to determine which is the best MacBook for you. Two core ranges, five display sizes, multiple chip variants, and that’s before we come to the configurable storage and memory options; it’s a MacBook minefield.

  • Internet Horrified at AI App for Cloning Dead Family Members

    A bizarre new smartphone app called "Vera AI" claims it allows its users to chat with "imaginary friends" and "create your friends or family members," a puzzlingly brazen use of AI tech that doesn't even try to hide the fact that it's looking to replace human connection. A screenshot of the app suggests that it […]

  • Apple's Secret AI Lab in Zurich Poised to Enhance iPhone Capabilities, Poach Google Staff

    Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) has aggressively recruited dozens of artificial intelligence experts from Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google, establishing a secretive AI laboratory in Zurich, Europe. This move comes as the company intensifies its efforts to lead in new AI model and product development. Apple, valued at $2.7 trillion, has been expanding its global AI and Machine Learning team by poaching many specialists from Google since hiring John Giannandrea as its top AI executive in 2