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Microsoft is cracking down on Windows 11 bloatware ads, forces LG to pull McAfee popup

MrGuvernment

MrGuvernment

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So enough people made enough noise, of course LG defending their move...as I am sure they got a decent amount of $$$ from McAfee to do this.

I can see users just clicking things, resulting in it getting installed, but also as noted, when you pay this kind of money, people do not want to see ad's for random crap!

https://www.windowslatest.com/2026/...bloatware-ads-forces-lg-to-pull-mcafee-popup/

LG defends itself, blames Windows distribution and user consent​

LG sent a statement addressing the monitor issue:

“LG Electronics reiterates that McAfee is not installed automatically and is never installed without the user’s explicit consent. The LG Monitor App Installer is distributed through Microsoft’s official Windows distribution process, which included McAfee as an option. McAfee will be installed only if a user actively chooses to proceed with the installation and provides consent. Under no circumstances is McAfee installed automatically or without user authorization. The LG Monitor App Installer does not access, collect, or transmit any customer personal data.”

Clearly, LG is placing the blame on Microsoft’s distribution process and on customers who supposedly clicked through a consent screen. It doesn’t match what users recorded, though.

Also, our report documented the app’s changelog, which lists McAfee as an “Additional App” added in a recent update, alongside marketing copy describing a free 30-day trial.

McAfee-in-Windows-Store.jpg


Multiple users reported seeing the McAfee popup appear without choosing to install it. LG’s app was what showed up uninvited. Either way, the issue was never that McAfee could theoretically be installed without consent. It’s that an expensive monitor’s companion app had no reason to show a pop-up for antivirus software for Windows 11.
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Does this monitor force you to install their software, or is this part of the driver package? When did you need to install software for a monitor?
 
DukenukemX said:
Does this monitor force you to install their software, or is this part of the driver package? When did you need to install software for a monitor?
Click to expand...
I think it works similar to mobos presenting a virtual drive with the software as an autorun. If similar, it shows up as a popup that asks for your consent to install it.
 
MrGuvernment said:
So enough people made enough noise, of course LG defending their move...as I am sure they got a decent amount of $$$ from McAfee to do this.

I can see users just clicking things, resulting in it getting installed, but also as noted, when you pay this kind of money, people do not want to see ad's for random crap!

https://www.windowslatest.com/2026/...bloatware-ads-forces-lg-to-pull-mcafee-popup/

LG defends itself, blames Windows distribution and user consent​

Click to expand...

Shame it had to take public outcry and Microsoft intervention to shut down LG's boneheaded maneuver.
 
F*ck, I just went all bougie and have a 77" LG C6 arriving this weekend, and will be using it with a HTPC
Is that afflicted with this crap as well?
As if my lettuce possibly giving me butthole-COVID isn't enough
 
I would like to say this is Microsoft trying to do the right thing; this is Microsoft covering its ass.
The Military and Government organizations are getting tired of the extra crap, and with the current costs of memory, you sure as hell know that IT has been talking to accounting, and they are bitching up a storm.
The Bloat is adding damned near $200 to the base cost of a device, then you need to deal with the extra time for IT to remove and mitigate it. Accounting has finally taken notice, and now the voices Microsoft actually listens to will start to speak up.

Microsoft is publicly getting in front of this before they are called in front of the EU or Congress to answer questions they don't want to.
 
Lakados said:
I would like to say this is Microsoft trying to do the right thing; this is Microsoft covering its ass.
The Military and Government organizations are getting tired of the extra crap, and with the current costs of memory, you sure as hell know that IT has been talking to accounting, and they are bitching up a storm.
The Bloat is adding damned near $200 to the base cost of a device, then you need to deal with the extra time for IT to remove and mitigate it. Accounting has finally taken notice, and now the voices Microsoft actually listens to will start to speak up.

Microsoft is publicly getting in front of this before they are called in front of the EU or Congress to answer questions they don't want to.
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Good point, we know the EU loves to fine Microsoft (more so than Apple or Google) for anti-consumer moves, even though this was 100% on LG, but MS basically allowed it....
 
I recently had found McAfee was installed on my gaming PC with an LG monitor. I didn't remember ever installing it so I thought my PC was compromised somehow. I ended up doing a full reformat.
 
GoldenTiger said:
That won't help... The pc installs stuff as soon as it detects the monitor/potentially tv.
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Wonder if turning off Driver updates via Windows would stop it entirely?

I mean according to MS it should be stopped now, or will be.

But also not connecting the LG TV at all to internet means you wont get updates which could install other crap on the TV WebOS it's self, along with not sending ACR data back to LG about everything you watch
 
MrGuvernment said:
But also not connecting the LG TV at all to internet means you wont get updates which could install other crap on the TV WebOS it's self, along with not sending ACR data back to LG about everything you watch
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Yep. This is important for the reasons you laid out, and why I don't let my TVs ever connect to my network.
 
MrGuvernment said:
Wonder if turning off Driver updates via Windows would stop it entirely?

I mean according to MS it should be stopped now, or will be.

But also not connecting the LG TV at all to internet means you wont get updates which could install other crap on the TV WebOS it's self, along with not sending ACR data back to LG about everything you watch
Click to expand...
Yea you can block it, also making your network connection "metered" will prevent such auto-downloads.

But it can be problematic to have those settings on permanently, as they will block auto-updates you do need, like when you plug in a USB device that needs to auto install drivers and whatnot.
 
MrGuvernment said:
Just keep the LG disconnected from the internet and do everything via your HTPC.
Click to expand...
Doesn't help. All of my LG TVs don't have any internet access, but it doesn't matter because this is via MS, not the monitor.
MrGuvernment said:
But also not connecting the LG TV at all to internet means you wont get updates which could install other crap on the TV WebOS it's self, along with not sending ACR data back to LG about everything you watch
Click to expand...
Yeah and unfortunately you also miss out on firmware updates, which can either be a big deal or not a big deal. I'm pretty sure that my TV has a few things that could be fixed via firmware updates, but now they are not.


This whole situation is crazy levels of stupid.
 
StoleMyOwnCar said:
Doesn't help. All of my LG TVs don't have any internet access, but it doesn't matter because this is via MS, not the monitor.

Yeah and unfortunately you also miss out on firmware updates, which can either be a big deal or not a big deal. I'm pretty sure that my TV has a few things that could be fixed via firmware updates, but now they are not.


This whole situation is crazy levels of stupid.
Click to expand...
you can usually do updates via a USB stick anyways, offline.
 
WhoBeDaPlaya said:
F*ck, I just went all bougie and have a 77" LG C6 arriving this weekend, and will be using it with a HTPC
Is that afflicted with this crap as well?
As if my lettuce possibly giving me butthole-COVID isn't enough
Click to expand...
Lost it at "lettuce giving me butthole-COVID" 🤣 🤣

This really is insane, anyone not planning on leaving windows yet in 2026... don't know what to tell you.
 
GoldenTiger said:
A third party software program acts poorly, yet you act as if it's an issue with the OS? Interesting take...
Click to expand...
Microsoft implemented the feature which allows hardware (which typically doesn't even need a driver) to pull in software from their store, and subsequently behave poorly. Yes it's 100% on LG for pulling this adware nonsense, but it wouldn't have been possible if Windows didn't have that "feature".
 
Nobu said:
Microsoft implemented the feature which allows hardware (which typically doesn't even need a driver) to pull in software from their store, and subsequently behave poorly. Yes it's 100% on LG for pulling this adware nonsense, but it wouldn't have been possible if Windows didn't have that "feature".
Click to expand...

Same thing with other peripherals. When I got my Asus Scope II keyboard a year or so ago imagine my confusion when few hours afterwards I was greeted by the Asus Armoury Crate installation screen. Hell not even confusion but almost panic, "WTF is going on in my computer" I thought. This LG thing is a continuation of that "nice" little new feature of Windows.

Now, while wholly unwanted and unnecessary, I get why something like Armoury Crate could be force fed via windows updates as TECHNICALLY (as untrue as it is) it is needed to fully utilize my keyboard, as manufacturer intended that is. It is a shit idea but I get it why someone at microsoft might think tjat this automatic download is a good idea. LG here crossed the line, McAfee has nothing to do with the peripheral in question and the whole LG app that pushed it could now be classified as Adware, something an antivirus should be taking care off if you ask me.
 
MaZa said:
Now, while wholly unwanted and unnecessary, I get why something like Armoury Crate could be force fed via windows updates as TECHNICALLY (as untrue as it is) it is needed to fully utilize my keyboard, as manufacturer intended that is. It is a shit idea but I get it why someone at microsoft might think tjat this automatic download is a good idea. LG here crossed the line, McAfee has nothing to do with the peripheral in question and the whole LG app that pushed it could now be classified as Adware, something an antivirus should be taking care off if you ask me.
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Keyboards aren't required to install anything on your system. I was faced with this with a Corsair keyboard, recently. I guess you have to assume every device is spying on you, nowadays, even the lowly keyboard - the last peripheral you want to be spying on you/hackable.
myzz said:
Lost it at "lettuce giving me butthole-COVID"

This really is insane, anyone not planning on leaving windows yet in 2026... don't know what to tell you.
Click to expand...
:LOL: IKR? Good one! For some reason, I had to read this one a few times. Been on vacation from this [H]ard humor.
 
littlegreenmenfromhome said:
You guys (linux advocates) are far to loud and far to hyperbole looking at your numbers.
Why would i downgrade my gaming performance with 5-50%?

View: https://youtu.be/RmP_Q_Mfosk?si=aCAS_tA59TBHx5bZ
Click to expand...

If AMD is doing fine and Nvidia isn't, then isn't this Nvidia's fault? Also, not all games lose performance in Linux, as some games even gain performance. The RX 9070 is a relatively new card and hasn't had time to get fully optimized on Linux. My 6700 XT is fully optimized and runs Crimson Desert faster in CachyOS than Windows 11.

View: https://youtu.be/1D7RNJ0fQDU?si=dwtzlVRunWsWkp8U
 
sleepeeg3 said:
Keyboards aren't required to install anything on your system. I was faced with this with a Corsair keyboard, recently. I guess you have to assume every device is spying on you, nowadays, even the lowly keyboard - the last peripheral you want to be spying on you/hackable.
Click to expand...

Of course not, that was partially my point. There is a lot of unnecessary shit which I personally do not care about but since they are there, I get why an average joe might think that it is cool that an OS takes care of installing all that crap. But since I am not an average Joe, you bet your ass I annihilated every single fucking trace of the Armoury Crate when I figured out what the hell is going on. If you ask me, by default the OS should only install the bare bones drivers that allow the device to function at very basic level, that is all. This is how everything used to work and if more is desired, you could install the other stuff yourself, previously from a CD that came with the peripheral or download from the internet for more up to date stuff.

Bit of a rant but it is so annoying how Windows keeps changing things. The setting which I think is mentioned here and is definetly all around the Youtube related to this LG thing, the "device installation" setting, used to prevent ALL automatic driver updates back in the early Windows 10 days and is something I always set when I did a clean install. Now it is a total crapshoot if it does anything, sometimes it is completely ignored. Now one has to dig deeper into group policies or registry to prevent automatic driver (and extra software) downloads completely.
 
The famous meme of Linus giving the finger is from a clip where he literally says "Fxxx you Nvidia" :)

Reason being their lack of support or maybe even outright hostility to the devs working on supporting their cards.

I'm not even saying I love Linux here but the fact that you can game at all and have any alternative to Windows is amazing... It wasn't like this even a few years ago.
 
sleepeeg3 said:
Keyboards aren't required to install anything on your system. I was faced with this with a Corsair keyboard, recently. I guess you have to assume every device is spying on you, nowadays, even the lowly keyboard - the last peripheral you want to be spying on you/hackable.
Click to expand...
This hit me when my mechanical keyboard "crashed" for the first time. Like, how can a keyboard crash!? :LOL:

Had to reboot it.

There's a whole ARM processor in there. I just wanted to be able to adjust the brightness of the lights at night :dead:
 
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