TalkTalk has hit back at the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), by re-launching a marketing campaign deemed misleading by the regulator.

Last week, the ASA sanctioned the service provider for claiming to offer the UK's "safest broadband" - a reference to its network level HomeSafe security offering.

BT and two members of the public raised issue with the ad, and the regulator upheld the complaint based on the fact that HomeSafe does not offer comprehensive broadband protection.

As such, TalkTalk was instructed not to use the advert again.

However, the provider has now revamped the ad, claiming to offer the UK's "safest broadband connection" - a small, but important distinction acknowledging the fact that only network security protection is included.

But a TalkTalk spokesperson reiterated the firm's view that the original "safest broadband" claim was accurate.

"We are clearly the safest way for families to get online - far and away beyond what BT is doing," they claimed.

The spokesperson described the recent events as a "complete waste of time", given that relatively few customers will recognise the difference between 'safe broadband' and a 'safe broadband connection'.