The sudden appearance of intrusive banner ads on the lock screen or in the system interface is a common problem faced by owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones. Often users notice that after updating the firmware or installing a new application, their device begins to display ads in unexpected places, not only annoying, but can indicate malware penetration or misconfiguration of MIUI system services.
You don't panic and bring your device to the service center. In most cases, you can fix the situation yourself by changing several settings in the settings menu or by removing newly installed software. It is important to understand the nature of these windows: it is either a regular feature of the HyperOS shell (or old MIUI), which you just need to turn off, or the result of the activity of a third-party advertising module.
In this detailed guide, we will look at all possible causes of advertising and offer step-by-step solutions, learn how to distinguish between system advertising and viral banners, and how to prevent them from appearing in the future. It is critical not to miss the stage of checking installed applications, as they are the most often the source of the problem.
The nature of advertising: virus or system function
The first step in combating unwanted ads is to accurately diagnose the source of their origin. There are two main types of ads in the Xiaomi ecosystem. The first type is the in-house recommendations that the company implements in its system applications, such as Explorer, Music or Cleanup. These ads usually appear inside the application interface and look like recommended content.
The second type is aggressive advertising that pops up on top of the desktop, in the notification curtain or when you unlock the screen, a behavior that is common for malware or aggressive adware modules that may have entered the system along with free software from unreliable sources. Android allows applications to request permission to display on top of other windows, which is often used by unscrupulous developers.
⚠️ Warning: If the banner ad covers the entire screen and doesn’t have a close button, or if the phone starts vibrating and making sounds without your actions, immediately go to Safe Mode to remove the malicious app.
To determine the culprit, try to analyze what actions the advertisements came up after. QR-If you play codes or play from an unverified source, you're 90 percent likely to have a problem with them. MIUI It is usually less intrusive and has a clear structure, while the viral one can appear chaotically.
Disabling system advertising in the settings MIUI and HyperOS
Xiaomi provides users with tools to manage personalized advertising, but these are often hidden in the depth of the menu or disabled by default. To minimize the amount of advertising content, you need to manually deactivate the MSA recommendation service (MIUI System Ads), a system process responsible for collecting data and showing targeted ads.
Go to your smartphone settings and find the Password and Security section (or Advanced Settings in older versions). Here you need to select Access to Personal Data or Authorization and Review. In the list, find the msa service and turn off the switchboard. The system will warn you that some features may stop working correctly, but for the average user this is not critical.
The shutdown procedure may require a repeat. If the switchboard didn't switch the first time or an error message appeared, wait 10 seconds and try again. Sometimes you need to do this action 3-5 times in a row until the system finally shuts down the service, a well-known feature of the shell, designed to make it harder to refuse advertising.
☑️ Disconnection of advertising services
Additionally, you should disable ad personalization in your Mi Account settings. Go to Settings → Mi Account → Advertising and turn off the option Personalized Ads. This will not remove the ads completely, but will make them less relevant and frequent. Also, every system application (themes, Music, Video) has its own Receive Recommendations switch, which is also worth deactivating.
Search and Remove Malware Applications
If an ad appears on your desktop or on top of other windows, it’s likely that an ad virus has taken over the phone. Often, these apps are disguised as system utilities or don’t have an icon on the menu to go unnoticed. To detect them, open Settings → Apps → All apps and scrolle through the list carefully.
Look for apps without a name or with a transparent icon, they may be called simply “Service,” “Update,” or they may not have a name at all. If you see an app like this and can’t remember when you installed it, it’s a candidate for removal, and look for apps with suspicious permissions, like a calculator that requires access to contacts and location.
| Sign of virus | Description of behaviour | Action. |
|---|---|---|
| Absence of icon | The app is on the list, but the icon is white or transparent. | remove immediately |
| High battery consumption | Unknown app is active even in the background | Stop and remove |
| Pop-ups | Advertising on top of other apps | Check the permissions "Above other windows" |
| Strange names. | Names like System Service, WiFi Update | Check the installation date |
To delete, go to the suspicious app and click Delete. If the delete button is inactive (gray), then the app has been granted device administrator rights. In this case, go to Settings → Password and Security → Privacy → Special Access Rights → Access to device administration and uncheck the virus.
Browser settings and blocking pop-up windows
Often, the source of advertising is not system errors, but notifications from sites you accidentally subscribe to. Browsers like Chrome, UC Browser or the built-in Mi Browser can display notifications from news portals that look like system advertising. To fix this, you need to clear the permissions for sites.
In Google Chrome, go to Settings → Site Settings → Notifications. Here you will see a list of all sites that have the right to send you push notifications. Ruthlessly delete any suspicious addresses or disable notifications completely. Similar actions must be performed in other installed browsers.
It is also recommended to install a reliable ad blocker that works at the DNS or system level. Apps like AdGuard or setting up a private DNS (like dns.adguard.com) under Settings → Connection and Sharing → Private DNS will help cut off most ad traffic before it hits the smartphone screen.
⚠️ Warning: Do not install multiple antiviruses or blockers at the same time. This can lead to resource conflict and slow down the system.
Resetting Advertising Settings and Identifiers
Even after the main services are disabled, the phone may still have advertising identifiers that are used for targeting. Google and Xiaomi use unique codes to track user interests, and resetting these identifiers periodically helps confuse advertising algorithms and reduce the frequency of impressions.
To reset your Google Advertising ID, go to Settings → Google → Advertising. click Reset Advertising ID or Remove Advertising ID. This action will create a new random number, breaking the link to your previous interest profile. In the MIUI shell, a similar feature is in Settings → Password & Security → Privacy → Advertising Services.
After performing these actions, it is recommended to restart the device, restart is necessary to ensure that all background processes associated with advertising are completed and can not resume their activity with cached data. If the problem persisted due to a temporary cache failure, it should disappear.
Preventing Advertising: How to Avoid Advertising in the Future
The best way to combat advertising is to prevent it. Xiaomi owners should be extremely careful when installing applications from third-party sources. Try to download software only from the official Google Play store or GetApps. Before installing any application, carefully read reviews and check the permissions requested.
Check the installed list regularly, if you see a program that hasn't been used in months, or one that you don't know what it's supposed to be, you better delete it, and don't ignore the system updates. In newer versions of HyperOS and MIUI, the company often closes vulnerabilities that ad modules could have penetrated the system.
Use built-in protections. The security app (antivirus from Xiaomi) has a scanning feature for viruses and potentially unwanted programs. Run a check at least once a week to help identify hidden miners or ad units before they start working.