Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones often encounter intrusive banner ads that appear in the most unexpected places of the interface, such as ads in standard applications, pop-ups when cleaning up memory, or even full-screen ads in icon folders. MIUI and its successor HyperOS are indeed saturated with ad modules that are activated by default by developers to monetize budget devices.
But there's a proven algorithm to completely clear the shell of marketing noise without losing warranty or functionality. You don't have to be a programmer or get root rights to get back a clean interface. We'll take every system component responsible for serving ads and turn them off consistently through hidden settings.
Many users mistakenly believe that advertising is an integral part of Android, but in the case of Chinese brands, it is only a shell add-on. msa (MIUI System Ads) is the main source of pop-ups and should be turned off first. If you skip this step, the rest of the settings may be useless, since the service will automatically reactivate.
Disabling the MSA system advertising service
The first and most important step is to deactivate the msa service, which is a system process that collects user data and targets advertising throughout the system. Without it, any other manipulations will have a temporary effect. The process requires care, as the system will try to hold the user by offering to wait or cancel the action.
To start, go to the device settings menu. Find the Passwords and Security section (in some firmware versions it may be simply called “Security” or be inside the Advanced Settings menu). Next, select Access to Personal Data. In the app list that opens, find msa and put the switch to an inactive state.
The system will run a countdown for 10 seconds, then require you to confirm the action. Press the Disable button (or Revoke) until the service is stopped. Sometimes you need to press the button 3-5 times in a row, because the interface may “hang” or the button may shift – this is a protective mechanism against accidental disconnection.
☑️ Checking the shutdown MSA
After a successful shutdown, it is recommended to restart the device so that the changes take effect at the kernel level. If you use a global firmware version, this service may be called a Recommendation service or have a similar name associated with recommendations. Owners of devices with a HyperOS shell should also check the settings in the Security -> Advertising section, where the personalization switch can be duplicated.
Setting up the “Security” and “Cleanup” application
The standard Security app is the system control center that most often displays banner ads when scanning viruses or clearing cache. To remove annoying pictures and suggestions to install unnecessary games, you need to change the internal settings of this module.
Open the Security app and click on the gear icon in the top right corner of the screen. In the settings menu, find Get Recommendations and turn it off. This action will remove the news feed and the ad blocks that appear on the home screen of the Security app.
Next, set up the Cleaner module. Inside the Security app settings, find the Cleanup section and also turn off the Receive Recommendations option, which will prevent banner ads from appearing at the bottom of the screen during the garbage cleaning process, and it is also useful to disable notifications from the security application itself, leaving only critical virus warnings.
⚠️ Warning: Don’t confuse disabling ads with disabling virus alerts. In the Security app notification settings, leave only high-risk items enabled to avoid missing a real threat.
Some versions of MIUI have a separate "Accelerate" feature in the notification curtain. Go to the settings of this widget and make sure that it also unchecks items offering "popular applications" or "recommendations." The purity of the interface depends on the sequential processing of each system module.
What to do if the settings are reset?
We remove advertising in folders and on the desktop
One of the most annoying features of the shell is that the Promoted apps section appears inside the folders on the desktop, and when you create an application folder, the system automatically adds a block with suggestions to download new games or programs, and fortunately, this is easily fixed.
To remove ads, create any folder on your desktop by folding two or more apps into it. Click on the folder name to open its contents. At the top of the window, you'll see the folder name and below it a recommendation block. Click on the gear icon or just the name to reveal the folder settings.
In the menu that opens, find the Promoted apps switch and turn it off. After that, the ad unit disappears and only your apps remain in the folder, and this setting applies individually to each folder, so you may have to repeat the procedure for all the groups of applications created.
- 📱 Application folders: Open the folder, click on the title and turn off the Recommended».
- 📰 Mi Video / Mi Music: In the settings of these applications there are also hidden items "Get recommendations" that need to be deactivated.
- 🔍 Google Search: In the desktop search widget, sometimes a Discover button appears that broadcasts news, and you can turn it off in the widget settings.
Also worth paying attention to is wallpaper. When you change wallpapers through the standard Themes app, the system may offer a "subscription" to change images with ad integration. Choose the "Do Not Use" or "Only Once" option to avoid imposing content.
Disabling Advertising in System Applications
System applications like Explorer, Music, Video and Themes also contain built-in ad modules. They're not as aggressive as MSA, but they periodically show banners at the bottom of the screen or when you launch.
In File Manager, you need to go to the menu (three bars), select Settings -> About (or "Settings") and find Receive recommendations. Disabling this feature will remove the news and offers advertising tape that is usually located at the bottom of the Explorer screen.
The Mi Music/Mi Video apps work on a similar principle: Go to the settings via the side menu, find the Advanced Settings or Content Settings section, and uncheck the Display Ads or Receive Recommendations box, which will make the media player interface minimalist and user-friendly.
The GetApps app store (formerly the Mi Store) can also send notifications about discounts and promotions. Go to the user profile in this store, open settings and disable all notifications, as well as personalization of advertising, this will reduce the information noise associated with the suggestions for installing applications.
Setting up Mi Browser and Blockers
The standard Mi Browser browser is often a source of pop-up ads in the form of push notifications from sites. Even if you have disabled system advertising, sites can continue to send notifications if you accidentally allow them to do so.
To clean your browser, open it, click on your user profile or the three dots in the bottom menu, go to Settings. Find the Privacy and Security section and turn off Personalized Guidelines. Also, in the Notifications section, you should prevent sites from asking permission to display notifications or clearing the list of permitted sites.
If standard methods to remove ads in the browser fails, or you use a third-party browser (Chrome, Opera), it is recommended to install an ad blocker at the level of the browser. DNS Or use specialized applications. One effective method is to change the way you do it. DNS-servers to the one that blocks advertising domains.
| Locking method | Difficulty | Efficiency | Impact on the battery |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSA shutdown | Low. | High (systemic) | Positive. |
| Set-up of applications | Medium | Medium | Neutral. |
| DNS-filtration (AdGuard) | Tall. | Maximum | Minor. |
| Blocking applications | Medium | Tall. | Average. |
Use of the DNS-filtering (for example, through the AdGuard app or private settings) DNS Android allows you to block ads before they are uploaded to a browser or app, which is the most radical and effective method, which also improves security when visiting questionable sites.
Frequent questions and additional settings
Even after you complete all the steps, there may be some nuances that depend on the firmware version or region. For example, Downloads may also have a recommendation feed. Open the download menu, click on three dots, and select Settings, then turn off Receive Recommendations.
Also worth mentioning is the Card Display feature in the Themes app, which sometimes displays news cards on your desktop, and to remove them, press the empty space on your desktop, go to settings and turn off the cards or select Classic mode.
⚠️ Note: When upgrading to a new version MIUI or HyperOS settings for accessing personal data (including disabling) MSA) After each major update, it is recommended to recheck the password and security item -> Access to personal data.
Remember that some "advertising" items may be widgets you added accidentally. Check your desktop and remove unnecessary news or weather widgets if they are broadcasting ad content. Completely cleaning your phone from ads requires a comprehensive approach to all of the items listed above.
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Use Second Space mode to create a clean, ad-free environment, unless you want to change the settings of the main system, and this will create a separate user profile from scratch.
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Complete removal of ads on Xiaomi requires disabling not only the MSA service, but also the individual setting of each system application (Conductor, Music, Security).