Remote Assistance feature switched off completely

BT has filled a security hole in its Home Hub service which could allow hackers to take control of the internet router.

The company has bypassed the problem by removing the Remote Assistance feature that allows BT admin staff to take control of the device.

"As part of BT’s commitment to protect its customers against internet security threats, the 'Remote Assistance' feature within the BT Home Hub Manager software is being deactivated," an official BT statement said.

"The removal of this feature, which is not required for normal operation of the Hub, does not impair any BT Total Broadband services and will not affect other PC-based remote access applications or remote upgrades."

Home Hub users clicking on a specially crafted link could have allowed a malicious user to bypass the administrator password procedure.

BT said that even though the Remote Assistance option will still appear on the Hub Manager's menus, users will not be able to activate it.

The option will be removed completely from future versions of the Hub Manager in the next firmware update.

Support for BT users will now be administered using the separate Remote Access feature.

BT has around two million Home Hub users in the UK.