Owners of budget and mid-budget Xiaomi smartphones often encounter intrusive banner ads that appear in the most unexpected places of the interface. Especially annoying is the situation when the ad pops up directly on the locked screen of the Redmi Note 8 T, blocking the time and notifications. This is not a virus or a consequence of infection of the device, but a regular feature of the MIUI shell aimed at monetizing the product.
Fortunately, you can set up the system completely without visual noise, and this requires you to do a series of sequential actions in the settings menu, disabling specific services and recommendations. Complete elimination of advertising will take no more than ten minutes, but will return the comfort of using the gadget.
In this guide, we will take a detailed look at each step needed to clear the lock screen from marketing content, and we will touch on system application settings, Mi Account management, and additional security options that are often overlooked when you first set up your device.
The nature of advertising on a blocked screen
The banners on the Redmi Note 8 T lock screen are most often broadcast via the Wallpaper or Wallpaper Carousel system app, a service that automatically changes background images and invites the user to subscribe to recommended content. The carousel feature is activated by default when the smartphone is first turned on, which leads to advertising slides.
In addition, the source of pop-ups can be the MSA (MIUI System Ads) service, which is a system process responsible for collecting analytics and displaying targeted advertising in embedded applications. Even if you do not see banners constantly, the background activity of this service consumes battery life and Internet traffic.
⚠️ Warning: Disabling system services completely may affect some widgets or personalized recommendations in the theme store. Make sure you don’t need automatic offers from Xiaomi before blocking them completely.
Understanding the mechanism of these components allows you to point to the source of the problem. Do not remove system applications forcibly through root rights, as this can lead to instability of the Redmi Note 8 T. Enough competent setting of the available parameters.
📊 How often do you have ads on a locked screen?
Constantly, every 5 minutes.
Only after unlocking.
Rarely, once a week.
Never seen one.
Disabling the wallpaper carousel in the screen settings
The first and most effective step is to deactivate the wallpaper carousel function, which is the module responsible for changing images and showing promotional offers on a locked screen, and first you need to go to the main settings of the device, finding the partition responsible for the appearance.
From the settings menu, select Always on and Lock screen. From the settings list, find the Wallpaper Carousel option. When you click on it, you'll be taken to the service management sub-menu, and you'll need to move the slider to the "Off" position.
- 🔍 Open the smartphone settings.
- 🔍 Go to Always On Screen and Lock Screen.
- 🔍 Select the wallpaper carousel item.
- 🔍 Turn the switch to off state.
After these actions, the ads on the lock screen should disappear instantly. If the system requests confirmation of the action, agree to turn off, it is also recommended to check the settings of the Wallpaper application itself, if it remains in the list of programs, and revoke all permissions to access the network there.
Setting up MSA service and system advertising
The MSA service is the central node of the MIUI advertising system, and it requires care to disable it, as the system can resist this action by offering to wait 10 seconds before confirming, find the password and security section in the settings, and then go to Access to Personal Data.
In the system process list, look for the msa and turn off the switch next to it, a countdown timer will appear, and after it is complete, press "Cancel." If you fail the first time, repeat the procedure 3-4 times until the system receives the command.
Settings → Password and security → Access to personal data → msa → Turn off
In parallel, you should disable receiving recommendations from the system itself. Go to Settings → Password and Security → Privacy → Advertising Services and turn off the option Personalized Advertising. This will reduce the frequency of targeted offers in other places of the interface.
What if the MSA doesn’t shut down?
If the msa service switch is constantly returning to its original position, try to turn off the Internet (Wi-Fi and mobile data) before performing an operation. Without a connection to the server, the system will not be able to check the subscription status and allow disconnection. Advertising recommendations management in system applications can penetrate the lock screen or the notification curtain through other system utilities, such as Security, bootloader or Music. Each of these applications has its own settings for receiving recommendations, which must be disabled separately. In the Security application, click on the gear in the right one, while you deepen the button on the button, select the recommendations from the top of the application. App Path to Setup Settings Security (cog) Get Download Menu recommendations → Settings Show Menu Explorer recommendations → Settings → About App Get Music Menus Recommendations → Settings Show recommendations This comprehensive check ensures that no hidden app will generate pop-ups. Xiaomi system applications are deeply integrated, so point setting each one is a must for a clean experience. Disabling notifications from Mi Browser and other services Often the source of annoying banners is the Mi Browser browser or GetApps app, which can even manage notifications at the level of applications that are blocked. Go to Settings. → Notifications and status bar → Notification management. Find GetApps, Mi Browser, Application Manager. For each, turn off notifications or leave only critical ones, removing Marketing and Recommendations. It's also worth checking Mi Account settings. → Mi Account. → Mi Cloud → Advertising (the path may vary depending on the version) MIUI) Make sure that all switches related to personalization and advertising are in the off state. 🛑 Turn off notifications for GetApps app. 🛑 Stop Mi Browser from showing notifications. 🛑 Check the Advertising Settings in Mi Account. 🛑 Clear the cache of advertising services through the storage menu. After cleaning the cache and disabling notifications, restart the device. This will fix the changes and update the configuration of system processes. Reboot is an important stage that is often ignored by users: DNS And for those who want to get the most out of it, there's a way to block ads at the network level. DNS-This method blocks requests to known ad servers. Go to Settings → Connection and sharing → Private DNS. Select the option "Host Name of the provider" DNS» And you type in dns.adguard.com. Save your settings. Now all traffic going to the ad servers will be blocked. ⚠️ Attention: Use of third-party DNS It can cause some local services to fail or slow down page loading if the server is unavailable. DNS auto-mode. Another hidden feature that can generate on-screen activity is "Special Features." Some apps request access to them to be displayed on top of other windows. → Advanced settings → Special features and revoke rights from suspicious or unknown applications. 💡Combination of shutdown MSA, Wallpaper carousels and installations DNS-The filter gives a 100% guarantee of no advertising in the Redmi Note 8 T. Frequently asked questions (FAQ) Is it safe to completely shut down the service? MSA Redmi Note 8 T? Yes, shutdown MSA It's safe for the operating system to run smoothly, and it just stops you seeing the product's promotional offers, and the system functions that aren't connected to the ads will continue to work properly, and why, after you turn off the wallpaper carousel, the ads will still appear? The source of the ads is probably from another app, like bootloader or Security, and check if you have installed third-party apps with aggressive advertising policies that have permission to display on top of other windows. Do I need to get Root rights to remove ads completely? No, for Redmi Note 8 T is enough standard settings and disabling services through the data access menu. Getting Root rights can disrupt banking applications and deprive you of warranties, so in this case it is not necessary. MSA Does it not press or come back? Is it a known feature of protection? MIUI. Try to shut down the internet, wait. 10 seconds after trying to shut down and repeat the action several times in a row. 3-5 Attempts to have the system accept a command to revoke consent. Does removing ads affect smartphone speed? Yes, disabling background advertising and analytics services has a positive effect on autonomy and performance. The system spends less CPU and memory on processing advertising modules, which is especially noticeable on devices of previous generations.