Owners of new Xiaomi smartphones often encounter intrusive content that appears in the most unexpected places of the interface.The Redmi Note 12S device, despite its performance and quality screen, contains a lot of marketing integrations by default. Browser advertising, pop-ups in system applications and recommendations in folders are not bugs, but part of the company's strategy to monetize budget and mid-budget devices.
Fortunately, the MIUI operating system that runs the smartphone allows you to flexibly adjust your privacy and content display settings. You don't need superuser rights or complex code manipulations to significantly clean the interface. Competent setup will take no more than 15 minutes, but the result will save your nerves and improve the speed of the gadget as a whole.
In this guide, we will look at all the available ways to block, from disabling the MSA system service to configuring your personal DNS. We will look at how to remove banners in standard applications and prevent them from appearing in the future. Follow the instructions consistently to achieve maximum effect.
MSA Disconnection: The Main Source of Advertising
The main mechanism responsible for distributing advertising content in the MIUI shell is the MSA (MIUI System Ads) system application, which collects data about your preferences and shows targeted offers, and disabling this service is the first and most important step in the fight for a clean screen.
The deactivation procedure requires care, as the system will try to dissuade you from this decision. When you first press the switch, the countdown timer may not start, or a warning window will appear. Don't be afraid: just press Cancel and try to turn off the service again. Usually on the second or third attempt of Settings → Passwords and security → Access to personal data allows you to successfully block the process.
⚠️ Attention: After the service is disconnected MSA Some personalization features may not work properly, but the basic functionality of the Redmi Note smartphone 12S remain completely unchanged.
It's worth noting that removing this component completely is impossible without a deep modification of the system, but forcing it to stop the flow of banners effectively. If you use Xiaomi services, such as cloud storage or themes, they will continue to work, just lose the advertising backing.
☑️ Checking the shutdown MSA
Set up a personal DNS to lock in the browser
Even after disabling system advertising, banners can pop up in the browser and some third-party applications, the solution to this problem is the use of DNS-over-HTTPS technology. This method redirects all requests of your device through a secure server that automatically filters known advertising domains.
To implement this method, Redmi Note 12S does not need to install third-party software. In modern versions of Android, this feature is built into the system level. You need to go to the network connection menu and write the address of a special server. This action does not affect Internet speed, but may require rebooting some applications to take effect.
As an address, you should use the service from AdGuard, which has proven to be a reliable filter. Enter the following address in the DNS settings field: dns.adguard.com. If the Internet stops working after entering the address, try the alternative from Cloudflare with filtering: security.cloudflare-dns.com.
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Use Incognito mode in your browser to check the effectiveness of the blocking: many sites show different amounts of advertising to authorized and guest users.
The advantage of the method is its versatility: it blocks ads not only in Chrome or Mi Browser, but also in many games and utilities that try to download a banner from an external server, which also increases your digital security level, preventing you from clicking on malicious links.
Cleaning System Applications from Recommendations
The MIUI shell is packed with standard utilities that are set to display news feeds and recommendations by default. Often users do not even realize that the Security, Downloads or Music section can broadcast advertising content. To remove ads on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S, you need to go through the settings of each such application separately.
Start with Task Manager and Memory Cleaner. Security → Settings (cogs) → Get recommendations to uncheck. Similar situation with the Downloads app: open it, click three dots in the corner, select settings and disable "Show recommended content." This will remove pop-ups with suggestions to install other games or applications.
| Annex | The path to adjustment | What to turn off |
|---|---|---|
| Conductor | Menu → Settings → About the application | Recommendations, Tape |
| Music. | Menu → Settings → Advanced settings | Displaying Advertising, Recommendations |
| Topics | Profile → Settings | Showing Advertising, Auto Update |
| Downloads. | Three points → Settings | Recommended contents |
Don't forget to check the lock screen settings as well. Glance wallpaper carousel often contains ad integrations that appear when the screen is turned on. You can turn them off via Settings → Lock screen → Wallpaper carousel by removing the activation switch. This will not only remove the ads, but also save battery power, as background content loading stops.
Managing personalized advertising in your account
Xiaomi, like many other tech giants, uses your behavior to build an advertising profile. Even if you turn off visible banners, data collection can continue in the background for analytics, and limiting this process is an important step to protect your privacy.
To manage these settings, go to Settings → Passwords & Security → Privacy → Special Permissions → Ads. Here you will see the Personalized Ads switch. Disabling it will not reduce the number of ads, but will make it less relevant and intrusive, as the system will stop using your data to select ads.
Also in this section, click the Reset Ad ID button, which generates a new random ID for your device, breaking the link to the previously collected interest profile, and resetting that ID regularly (once every few months) makes it almost impossible to build an accurate digital user portrait.
⚠️ Note: Resetting your ad ID may temporarily affect some free apps that use this information to test their ad integrations.
Hiding recommendations in the desktop interface
Owners of Redmi Note 12S often notice that the “Recommended Apps” section appears in the folders with applications, and the Google Discover or Yandex news feed may pop up on the desktop. These interface elements take up useful space and distract attention.
To clear the folders, open any of them, click on the folder name on the top, and in the menu that appears, turn off the option "Recommended Apps." After that, the folder will only contain the shortcuts that you set yourself, and this simple action returns control over the organization of the workspace.
To turn off the news feed on the home screen, you need to pinch your two fingers across the desktop (as if you want to zoom in) to go into edit mode. On the left or right, you'll see a gear icon or a "More" button. In the menu that opens, find a "News Feed" or "Google Discover" switch and deactivate it. Now the swipe to the right will return you to the first screen, rather than opening the news aggregator.
Why does the ad return after the update?
Additional measures: debugging and special facilities
Sometimes ads can get into a device through hidden permissions or special features. Some unscrupulous applications that you may have installed before use these features to display on top of other windows. Checking the list of allowed applications is an important part of a comprehensive cleanup.
Go to Settings → Additional Settings → Special Features. Carefully review the list of services enabled. If you see unfamiliar names or apps there that don’t seem to need this level of access (like a calculator or flashlight), immediately turn them off. Often, this is the channel that sends pop-up banners to the full screen.
Also, check the Security section for suspicious certificates. Go to Settings → Passwords & Security → Privacy → Trusted credentials. Make sure there are no root certificates you don’t know that can intercept traffic and replace content in your browser.
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A comprehensive approach that includes disabling MSA, configuring DNS, and checking permissions ensures that 99% of advertising debris is removed from your Redmi Note 12S.
Digital hygiene can help you keep your device clean, check your installed app list regularly, and remove the apps you don't use, many of which may contain hidden ad display modules that are activated periodically.