How to remove ads in Xiaomi on the lock screen: a step-by-step guide

Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often face intrusive marketing that appears in the most unexpected places of the system. Especially annoying is the situation when, after turning on the power button instead of the usual wallpaper or widgets, the user sees banner ads or news feeds. Advertising on the lock screen in Xiaomi is not a virus or an accident, but part of the aggressive monetization of budget devices by the manufacturer.

Fortunately, the modern MIUI shell and the new HyperOS allow you to flexibly customize this aspect, if you know where to look for the right switches. In this article, we will analyze all possible sources of content when blocked, from embedded services like Glance to third-party applications, and provide a clear algorithm for how to disable them, you can remove ads by regular means without resorting to complex manipulation of ADB or root rights.

You don’t have to put up with constant notifications of “burning” offers or news that cut off access to basic phone features. We’ll look at the settings of the MSA (MIUI System Ads) system application, theme settings and the specific features of the screensaver that often cause unwanted content. Let’s start with the most common source, Glance.

Disconnecting Glance and News Feed

The most common reason for displaying ads and text blocks on a locked screen is the activated Glance feature (or Lock Screen Magazine in older versions of firmware), which replaces static wallpaper images with dynamic news and promotional feeds, and to turn off Glance, you need to go to the device settings menu, where you hide the lock screen control.

Depending on the version of the MIUI shell or HyperOS, the path may vary slightly, but the logic remains the same: you need to find the partition responsible for the appearance of the blocked state and force the service to stop downloading content from the Internet, often users accidentally activate this feature when they first set up a smartphone, agreeing to all the conditions without carefully reading.

Once you do this, the system will stop downloading new images and ad integrations every time you turn on the screen. If the switch is in the active position, but the ads continue to appear, it is worth checking for updates for system components in the Security application. Sometimes older versions of the modules do not properly process the disabling command.

⚠️ Note: After you turn off Glance, standard wallpaper may not apply automatically.You will need to manually select a static image from a gallery or standard collection to stop the lock screen being black or display previews.

System Constraints and MSA

Xiaomi’s MSA (MIUI System Ads) process is responsible for collecting data and displaying personalized ads in the interface. Although it directly affects ads in folders and system applications, its work is closely related to the overall behavior of the system, including the lock screen, and disabling this component is a mandatory step to increase privacy.

To access the necessary settings, go to the authorization and security menu. This is the key switch that allows the system to show relevant offers. Disabling the MSA requires confirmation, and the system may ask you several times about your decision, trying to convince you to keep the service active to "improve the user experience."

• 📱 Go to Settings. → Passwords and security → Access to personal data.
• 🔍 Find the msa app in the list and disable the switchboard on the right.
• ⏳ A countdown timer will appear (usually 10 seconds), after which you need to press Cancel.
• 🔄 If you fail the first time, repeat the procedure. 2-3 The servers may not respond immediately.

It is important to understand that complete removal of this component is impossible without a deep modification of the system, but the withdrawal of the license agreement actually stops its work. This action will also help save battery power, as the background statistical collection processes will no longer consume the CPU resources.

Managing recommendations in Xiaomi applications

Ads on the lock screen can be linked to recommendation systems of embedded applications such as Music, Video or Explorer, and even if you don't actively launch them, they can generate notifications or widgets that are displayed when blocked, and you need to individually check the settings of each system application.

In modern versions of MIUI, there is a single ad settings center that allows you to centrally manage the display of recommendations, but for guaranteed results, it is better to check each application separately. This will take a few minutes, but will ensure the cleanliness of the interface.

Once these settings are cleared, the system will no longer generate content suggestions that could be broadcast to the lock screen via widgets. Please note that in some regions the settings may be called otherwise, such as “Receive news” or “Content Recommendations”.

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Use Do Not Disturb mode or customize notifications for specific apps to hide the preview of messages on the lock screen, which are often confused with ads.

Verification of third-party applications and permissions

The problem may not only be caused by Xiaomi system services, but also by third-party applications that you installed yourself. Often free programs such as memory cleaners, flashlights or cameras request permission to display on top of other windows or create shortcuts on the desktop and lock screen.

To identify the culprit, look at a list of newly installed apps, if the ad appears after installing a utility, there is a high probability that it is the cause, and removing suspicious software is the fastest way to solve the problem in such cases.

• 🛑 Go to Settings. → Annexes → All applications.
• 👀 Carefully review the list for apps with suspicious or no icons.
• 🚫 Check permissions: Find the item “Display on top of other apps” and disable it for all unnecessary programs.
• 🧹 Use the built-in antivirus in the Security app to scan the device.

Special attention should be paid to applications that promise to “speed up the game” or “traffic savings”, which are the ones that most often embed their ad modules into the system, and if you do not use such programs daily, they should be removed and replaced with more reliable counterparts.

⚠️ Warning: Some malware masquerades as system processes. If you see an application called System Service or Update, but it has a strange icon or consumes a lot of resources in the background, check its installation path. System files are at the root, and malicious files are usually in the user folder.

Change of theme and design of the interface

Some of the themes available in the Mi Themes store may have built-in promotional modules or widgets that display promotional material on the lock screen. Even if you have disabled all system settings, the theme itself can force the return of advertising elements.

You should switch to a standard Classic or Default theme temporarily to see if the ads disappear. If the problem is solved after the theme change, it's a third-party design issue. You can continue to use custom themes, but only choose proven high-rated options.

It's also worth checking the settings of the theme itself. In some cases, there's a separate "Recommendations" or "Advertising" switch in the theme menu, which you need to deactivate manually. Go to the Themes app, go to the profile and check the installed components.

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The standard Xiaomi theme is guaranteed to contain no third-party ads, unlike many free themes from third-party authors that can be monetized through banner displays.

Resetting Advertising Settings through Engineering Menu

For advanced users who want to be sure to clear all advertising identifiers, there is the option of resetting settings through special codes or menus.This will not remove the ads completely, but will reset the advertising ID, which can temporarily reduce the frequency of impressions.

Enter the Phone app code ##6484## to log into the engineering menu (not all models) and you can find additional tests and settings, but beware: changing unknown parameters can lead to unstable operation of the device.

A safer method is to reset your advertising ID through Google Settings. Go to Settings → Google → Advertising and click Reset Advertising ID. This action will break the link between your device and your accumulated interest profile.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)