How to remove ads on the lock screen Xiaomi

Xiaomi and Redmi smartphone owners often encounter intrusive content that appears at the most inopportune moment, especially when you turn on the screen instead of the usual wallpaper or widgets, you see banner ads or “cards” with recommendations, which is not a virus, but a regular feature of the MIUI or HyperOS shell, designed to monetize budget devices.

Fortunately, the system provides enough tools to get the device back to its cleanest appearance. Turning off the ad requires several sequential actions across different menu sections. We'll take each step in detail so you can completely clear the lock screen of unnecessary visual noise.

Sometimes changes don't take effect immediately, and you may need to restart your device, and it's important to understand that there are different system applications that are responsible for creating content: Wallpaper, Security, and MSA. A comprehensive approach guarantees results on any version of the firmware.

Disabling the "Wallpaper Carousel" function

The main source of images and text on the locked display is the wallpaper carousel service (in some regions called Glance), which automatically loads new backgrounds and often combines them with news blocks or promotional materials of partners.

To deactivate this option, you need to go to the lock screen settings. The path may vary slightly depending on the Android version, but the logic remains the same. Find the Settings app in the main menu and go to the interface look section.

⚠️ Warning: After disabling Carousel, your wallpaper can be replaced by standard static images installed by default in the system.

Next, you'll find the lock item, which is often hidden inside the screen menu in modern MIUI versions, and you'll need to find the backlight switch and put it inactive.

• 📱 Open Settings and select Always on screen and lock screen.
• 🎨 Click on Wallpaper Carousel or Glance for Mi.
• 🚫 Translate the switchboard Include the wallpaper carousel in the position "Off».
• ✅ Confirm the action in the pop-up window if the system requests confirmation.

After that, the wallpaper will stop changing and the inserts will disappear, and if you want to just change the source of the images, but not turn off the function completely, you can choose other categories of images from the same menu, although this does not guarantee the absence of commercial content.

Set up notifications in the “Security” app

Another channel for advertising is the system app Security, which has the power to display notifications on top of other windows, including the lock screen, and often offers to install cleaners or optimizers.

To fix this problem, you need to limit the rights of a particular service within the application, and that won't remove the program itself, which is technically impossible without root rights, but it will prevent it from displaying information debris on your screen.

Inside the security menu, you need to find notification settings. The interface can be overloaded with technical terms, so be careful when selecting items. Look for sections related to "Recommendations" or "Getting Tips."

⚠️ Warning: Do not turn off notifications of critical threats or viruses if they appear.

You should also check the settings of the app itself in the general menu of the smartphone. In the Applications section, find Security and go to the notification management, and here you can configure in detail what alerts the system is authorized to display.

• 🛡️ Launch the Security app (green icon with shield).
• ⚙️ Click on the gear icon in the upper right corner of the screen.
• 📢 Select the item Get recommendations and turn it off.
• 🔕 Additionally, disable the option Important Warnings if it offers third-party software installation.

By doing this, you will significantly reduce the frequency of pop-ups, and the system will continue to work in the background, protecting the device, but will stop distracting you with visual noise.

Deactivation of MSA (MIUI System Ads)

The most effective way to combat all-in-the-shell advertising is to disable the MSA (MIUI System Ads) service, which is responsible for collecting data on user behavior and targeting ads in standard applications.

The shutdown procedure has one feature: the first time you try to turn off the system, the system may "error" and not turn off the service the first time. This is not a bug, but a feature of protection, so the shutdown button sometimes has to be pressed several times, waiting for the timer to appear.

Settings → Passwords and security → Access to personal data → MSA

If you find the service in the list, try to turn off the switch. If the countdown timer appears (usually 10 seconds), wait for it to end and press "Disable." If the timer does not appear and the switch immediately returned to active position, try again 3-5 times in a row.

After successfully disabling MSA, ads should be lost not only on the lock screen, but also in the system folders, browser and the Music app, a key step for comfortable smartphone use.

Cleaning up notifications for the Mi and Chrome browser

Users often confuse system advertising with notifications from sites they accidentally subscribed to. If messages about “winning”, “viruses” or news appear on a locked screen, most likely, the source lies in the browser settings.

Xiaomi smartphones use the default Mi Browser browser, which has deep integration with the system, and can display notifications even when the application is closed, and third-party browsers behave similarly if they are given permissions.

To solve the problem, you need to go to the settings of a particular browser, find the section responsible for notifications or content, and look at the list of sites that have the right to send push notifications, ruthlessly delete or block any suspicious domains.

⚠️ Note: If you see a virus notification on behalf of the system, but it comes through the browser, it is fake.

It is also recommended to clear the browser cache. Accumulated temporary files may contain scripts that initiate the display of banner ads. This will take a couple of minutes, but will help to get rid of the "tails" of previous activity.

• 🌐 Open your main browser settings (three dots in the corner).
• 🔔 Go to Site Settings or Notifications.
• 🗑️ Find the list of permitted sites and delete all unknown addresses.
• 🧹 In the application settings, find the Clear Data item and select Cash.

After clearing lists and cache, reboot your phone.This will update the notification service status, and the old, stuck banners should disappear from the lock screen.

Disabling personalization and recommendations

The MIUI and HyperOS shells aim to personalize the experience by analyzing your actions. However, this feature is closely related to displaying advertising content. By disabling data collection for personalization, you make the system less “smart” but much cleaner.

The privacy settings are in the deep layers of the menu, and you'll need to find the section that's related to your Mi Account or general security, and there's the switches that are responsible for sending usage statistics to the developer's servers.

You should also pay attention to the folder settings on your desktop, which often include the Recommended Apps feature, which loads up game and service icons, and while they don't appear directly on the lock screen, they're part of the same ecosystem of intrusive content.

In some versions of the firmware, there is a separate "Receive recommendations" switch in the general system settings, which depends on the region selected when you first start the phone, and if you find this item, you must deactivate it.

• 🔒 Go to Settings. → Passwords and security.
• 📊 Select the access point for personal data.
• 📉 Find in the list Get recommendations and disable access.
• 📁 Check the folder settings on the desktop and remove the “Recommendations” box».

A comprehensive shutdown of all personalization sources is the best way to prevent future ad returns, even after system updates.

Replacement of the topic with standard

Sometimes the source of the problem is third-party themes downloaded from the Themes store. Theme authors can embed their own advertising modules or widgets that are displayed on the lock screen regardless of the system settings.

If you’re actively customizing your interface, try temporarily returning a standard theme to help diagnose whether the problem is systemic or caused by a specific design. Xiaomi’s standard themes are more rigorously moderated.

💡

Before installing any theme from the store, carefully look at the screenshots of the lock screen. If you see news widgets or banners, it is better not to install such a theme.

To return to the original look, go to the Themes app. In the user profile (human icon), look for the My Themes section and select the classic design option, such as Classic or Default.

After applying the standard theme, all modified interface elements, including the lock screen, will be replaced with factory ones, which is guaranteed to remove any third-party inserts that may have been embedded through the design file.

If the ad disappears after the theme change, it means that the reason was the design. You can continue to look for other topics, but be selective and check the reviews of other users before installing.

💡

Changing the theme to the standard one is the fastest way to check whether the source of the advertisement is a third-party design file.