Ownership of a MIUI-based device is often overshadowed by intrusive ads that appear in the most unexpected places on the interface. POCO X3 users are no exception when faced with banners in standard applications and system notifications. This is not an accident, but part of the company's business model to keep the cost of the gadget at an affordable level.
But there are many ways to minimize or eliminate this digital noise, and you don't have to have superuser rights or reflash your device to get back a clean experience, and most of the settings are hidden in the back of the menu, but we'll help you find them.
Let's take a closer look at what mechanisms are responsible for displaying content and how to safely deactivate them. The correct configuration of the system will take no more than fifteen minutes of your time, and the result will be a faster and more enjoyable operation of your smartphone.
MSA Disconnection: The Main Source of Advertising
At the heart of Xiaomi’s advertising ecosystem is the MSA (MIUI System Ads) system application, which collects your preferences and translates personalized offers to different sections of the shell, and without disabling this service, combating banners will be ineffective.
To deactivate a component, you have to go to the settings and find the partition that handles authorization and privacy, and it can be a little confusing because the developers have made it difficult to access this option, and you need to be careful when you find the right switch.
Find password and security in the menu, then go to Access to Personal Data. In the app list that opens, find msa and turn off the access slider. The system will require you to wait 10 seconds before confirming an action, and then request final consent.
⚠️ Attention: If the msa switch switch switch switches back on immediately, don't panic. This is a known feature of the system. 3-5 once in a row until the system finally prohibits the application from accessing data.
After the successful shutdown of the MSA service, the number of ad integrations in standard applications such as Music, Themes and Explorer will be significantly reduced, a basic step that every POCO owner must first perform.
Setup of system applications: Explorer, Music and Themes
Even after the MSA is disabled, individual apps can continue to show recommendations, because each has its own internal content display settings, and you have to go through each popular app separately.
Start with the Explorer app, which is often used to manage files. Open the settings menu inside the app itself (usually three dots or bars in the corner) and find the About or Settings section.
You need to do the same thing in Themes, and go to the user profile through the bottom bar, select settings, and turn off the Receive Recommendations feature, which will remove banners from the home page of the design store.
In the Music app, the process may vary depending on the version of the shell. Go to the settings, find the Advanced Settings section, and uncheck the "Receive recommendations" box. This action will clear the interface of extraneous suggestions.
☑️ Checking applications
Remember that after MIUI or HyperOS updates, some settings may be reset, and checking these points periodically will help keep the interface clean, especially for users who rarely change standard applications.
Personalization of advertising and notifications in the browser
The Mi Browser is one of the most aggressive sources of advertising in the Xiaomi ecosystem.It often offers news, articles and videos that have nothing to do with your queries.
Open your browser, click on three menu bars, and go to settings. Find the Privacy and Security section. You need to turn off the Personalized Recommendations option. This action will limit the collection of data about your interests.
Also worth checking is the notification settings. In the same browser settings menu, look for Notifications and turn off push notifications from sites you have visited. Often users accidentally allow sites to send spam, mistaking them for system messages.
If you don’t use a standard browser, you can simply disable or remove updates to free up space. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps, find a browser, and select the appropriate action.
Alternative browsers
It is important to understand the difference between system notifications and site notifications, the first being controlled by Android settings, the second by the browser settings, and confusion often leads to users being unable to get rid of spam.
Managing Notifications from Installed Applications
Often users confuse MIUI ads with intrusive notifications from installed games and utilities.Many free apps use ad networks to monetize, and these ads can appear directly on the desktop or in the notification curtain.
To identify the culprit, note which app launches immediately after the ad window closes. If you can't catch the moment, use the notification history. On Android 11 and later, it's available in the notification settings.
Find an app that is suspicious and go to its notification settings, where you can completely disable the display of notifications or leave only important (for example, only for private messages).
| Type of application | Recommended action | Risk of shutdown |
|---|---|---|
| Messengers | Leave all notices | High (missing messages) |
| Social media | Leave only the important ones. | Medium (likes skip) |
| Games | Shut it down completely. | Low (spam only) |
| Utilities (lantern, calculator) | Shut it down completely. | Low (advertising spam) |
| Shops (AliExpress, Ozon) | Just leave orders. | Average (share loss) |
There's a category of apps called Clearer or Optimizer that are often the source of aggressive advertising, and if you see them on the installed list, consider having them.
⚠️ Warning: Be careful when disabling system components whose names you don't know. Disabling Google Play services or system frameworks can lead to unstable operation POCO X3.
Using DNS to block at the network level
One of the most effective methods of combating advertising is the use of private DNS. This method allows you to block advertising requests even before they load on the screen of your POCO X3.
To implement this method, you do not need to install additional applications. In modern versions of Android, this feature is built into the system. Go to Settings → Connection and Sharing (or “Additional Settings”) → Private DNS.
In configuration mode, select “DNS Host Name” (or “Manual”) and enter the address of a trusted lock server. One of the most popular and proven options is AdGuard.
dns.adguard.comAfter you enter the address, save the settings. The system will check the connection, and if the address is entered correctly, ads in most applications and on sites will stop showing. This can also speed up the loading of pages, since the ad scripts will not load.
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Use of the DNS-Not only does filtering remove ads, it also saves traffic, because the ad content is not loaded into the device's memory, which is especially useful when using the mobile Internet.
Note that this method is not ideal. Some applications may stop working correctly if they are tied to advertising SDKs for the functionality, in which case the DNS can be temporarily disabled or an exception added if the router supports this configuration.
Resetting the advertising identifier and additional measures
Even after all the settings, ad networks continue to use your device’s unique identifier to target, and resetting that identifier periodically helps confuse algorithms and reduce the frequency of impressions.
To reset, go to Settings → Password & Security → Privacy → Advertising. click here on Reset Advertising ID. This action is safe and unaffected!
It's your personal data.
It is also recommended to disable the Receive References feature in the global system settings if this option is available in your version of MIUI. Often it is located in the Special Features section or at the very top of the settings menu.
Remember to update your system. Newer versions of Xiaomi firmware sometimes add new privacy controls to help you better manage your ad preferences. However, newer versions may add new sources of advertising, so be careful after updates.
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A comprehensive approach, including disabling MSA, configuring DNS and validating application rights, gives the best result in the fight against advertising on POCO X3.
In conclusion, it’s hard to get rid of proprietary advertising completely, but it’s possible to minimize it, and following these instructions will make your POCO X3 much more comfortable.