Open-screen advertisements and pop-up advertisements frequently appear in daily scenarios such as navigation, parking payment, access control verification, tram charging, express delivery pickup, etc., which upset many users. In April this year, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued the "Notice on Deepening the Ecological Governance of Internet Advertising", proposing the concept of "Ecological Governance of Internet Advertising" for the first time, and simultaneously issued the "Key Tasks for Rectifying the Order of the Internet Advertising Market" to strictly crack down on illegal Internet advertising activities that have been strongly reported by the public in accordance with the law, of which illegal pop-up ads are an important part.
More than half a year has passed, and the chaos of open-screen advertising has been contained to a certain extent. However, as this year’s “Double Eleven” online shopping peak approaches, some APP display advertising chaos seems to be resurrecting.
"Double Eleven" is approaching, and Ms. Mi, who lives in Sichuan, is a little annoyed by a map APP on her mobile phone. "Recently, almost every time I click on it, the opening screen advertisement automatically jumps, and I need to click several times to return manually. But every time I use it, I am riding a bicycle or driving, and I almost had an accident on the highway last time!" She told reporters that the opening screen advertisement "disappeared for a while" a few months ago, and she didn't know when it "came back" again.
The reporter then conducted an actual test using a mobile phone with a different operating system from Ms. Mi. When he opened three mainstream navigation software, he found that two of them still had about 5 seconds of on-screen advertisements. If you want to skip them, you can only click the small button in the upper right corner of the screen, but if you are not careful, you will jump to the shopping platform page.
Many similar incidents have attracted attention recently——
In Shenzhen, Guangdong, a resident immediately called the police after discovering that his neighbor's house was on fire. He clicked on a link to upload a video of the scene as required by the police. However, he repeatedly encountered advertisements on the browser's screen. He wanted to turn off the advertisement but accidentally closed the browser. It took a minute to upload successfully. Fortunately, the firefighters arrived on the scene in time and no casualties were caused.
At an electric vehicle charging station in a certain community, after scanning the code to open the mini program, various pop-up advertisements will pop up. After clicking "Charge Now", "Member Recharge" and "Watching Videos for Free Electricity Bill" will pop up, etc. Behind them are different package promotions or third-party pages; After a set of "combinations", from scanning the code to powering up, you have to go through more than a dozen jumps.
Residents in a neighborhood in Beijing reported that their access control APP often pops up screen advertisements, and jumps to the shopping platform if they are not careful. "I used to take out the key to open the door and enter the house when I came home, but now people standing at the door can't get in. They have to pass the advertisement first." Want to eliminate ads? You have to spend money to become a member.
There are also media reports that many residential complexes and commercial complex parking lots have embedded advertisements in the code-scanning payment process, using phrases such as "distributing gas coupon packs" and "reducing parking fees" to attract attention, and induce car owners to fill in their mobile phone numbers. Once entered, they will automatically open paid memberships to third-party platforms. The "advertisement" notices on these pages are very inconspicuous, and many people mistakenly think that they are necessary steps for payment. During periods of intensive traffic, car owners are eager to line up and leave, and most of them do not take the time to carefully screen, making it easier to jump by mistake.
In addition, pickup from smart express delivery cabinets, daily use of terminals such as smart TVs, smart speakers, and home cameras, and even campus service apps or mini-programs such as students’ meals and water supplies, class schedules, and smart logistics are all scenes where similar advertising chaos occurs.
The reporter searched for keywords such as "open-screen ads" and "pop-up ads" on the consumer service platform "Black Cat Complaints" and found nearly 4,000 complaint records, among which "interfering with normal use", "being deducted without knowing it" and "cannot turn off ads even after replenishing membership" are high-frequency complaint reasons.
Digital life services are supposed to save time and lower barriers to entry, but these convenient tools under the banner of "smartness" have turned into "digital roadblocks" in front of users, and their open-screen advertising chaos is "especially irritating."
Zhang Yong, a lawyer at Shanghai Junyue (Hefei) Law Firm, pointed out that parking payment, community entrance, express delivery pickup, etc. are common links in daily life. Operators take advantage of the closed and irreplaceable nature of these life scenes to force push advertisements and solicit personal information in disguise, which is an illegal profit-making behavior that abuses the advantageous position of the scene. Moreover, taking navigation software as an example, if advertisements are mistakenly clicked and redirected in risky scenarios such as high-speed driving, the consequences or costs are not only related to the experience, but may also threaten personal and public safety.
Liao Huaixue, a senior partner at Tahota Law Firm and an expert at the China Advertising Association think tank, pointed out that taking the parking payment scene as an example, related chaos will not only cause direct economic losses to users, such as activating automatic deductions or long-term payment services without full knowledge, inducing behaviors such as filling in mobile phone numbers and authorizing the acquisition of location information, but may also bring about more persistent and hidden risks of personal information leakage.
Another type of scene caused public outrage: In Huangshan, Anhui, an old man wanted to take a picture of the beautiful fish lanterns with his mobile phone. He raised his phone but accidentally clicked on the APP. In just half a minute, the advertisement jumped more than 20 times and could not be turned off.
Seeing such scenes, many netizens commented: "It's so sad, I think of my elders." Others were filled with indignation: "It's no wonder that the elderly don't know how to use mobile phones. Someone dug a hole specifically for them to fall into." Analysis by Wang Sixin, a professor at Communication University of China, believes that to some extent, some illegal pop-up advertisements are targeted at the cognitive characteristics and behavioral habits of the elderly, and have formed a large-scale industrial chain.
The chaos of pop-up ads also brings usage difficulties to other digitally vulnerable groups. In Jiangxi, a visually impaired person used the screen reading function to use his mobile phone. A pop-up advertisement popped up on the screen. He repeatedly searched but could not find the close button. It is understood that when the finger moves across the screen, the screen reading function will read out advertising copy such as "Recommended" and "Get it now", but the "cross" used to close does not have a clear text label that can be read aloud. For ordinary users with flexible fingers, normal vision, quick reactions, and the ability to understand that "a cross may not be a cross," the inability to turn off ads is a "blockage." However, for digitally vulnerable groups such as the elderly and disabled who have limited physical functions, digital literacy, and infrastructure conditions, this may directly lead to inconvenience for them to use, and they may even become "hunted" by commercial or black industry interests.
Why is it repeatedly banned?
Is it illegal to open screens, pop-up windows and other "blocking" advertisements in life service scenarios? Why is it so difficult to eradicate?
Lin Feiran, a lawyer at Beijing Jingdu Law Firm, pointed out that business models such as opening screens and pop-up advertisements are not illegal in themselves, but if they conceal service rules, deprive users of informed expectations, and infringe on consumers' rights to know the true situation of receiving services, independently choose goods or services, and refuse forced transactions, it is suspected of violating the "Consumer Rights and Interests Protection Law of the People's Republic of China"; and failing to ensure one-click closure and using false signs to induce clicks also violates the "Internet Advertising Management Measures".
Some experts pointed out that the root cause of such chaos lies in the industry's excessive pursuit of profits. According to the State Administration for Market Regulation, China’s Internet advertising industry has developed rapidly in recent years and has formed a complex ecosystem driven by data and technology. Old problems such as Internet advertising that emphasizes creativity and hype still exist, and new problems such as the abuse of artificial intelligence and excessive pursuit of traffic continue to emerge.
According to industry insiders, open-screen advertising is the main profit channel for many free software. Reducing the free user experience through pop-up windows and forcing them to purchase membership services is also a common revenue strategy. Someone has calculated that the daily income of pop-up windows in the top APP can reach tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of yuan. According to the advertising law, the upper limit of fines corresponding to one-click closing violations is only 30,000 yuan.
Difficulties in tracing the origin of technology, defining responsibilities, and safeguarding user rights are also structural reasons why related advertising chaos continues.
On the one hand, the current Internet advertising online and offline scenes are intertwined, and new induction methods are emerging in endlessly. Although the "Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China" and "Internet Advertising Management Measures" clearly stipulate that pop-up advertisements should be clearly marked with a closing sign and ensure one-click closing, the current mandatory regulations for specific parameters such as trigger sensitivity in specific scenarios are still incomplete.
On the other hand, the relevant advertising industry chain is complex. Many apps themselves do not directly place ads, but are connected to the SDK (Software Development Kit) of third-party advertising service providers. It is easy for operators, advertising service providers and other entities to "pass the blame". Even if a single link is investigated and punished, the entire chain can still be quickly reorganized.
Scenarios where people's livelihood is urgently needed should be the key areas for advertising supervision. In April this year, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued the "Key Tasks for Regulating the Order of the Internet Advertising Market", which clearly listed pop-up windows and open-screen advertisements in people's livelihood scenarios such as municipal payment, parking payment, charging payment, transportation, finance, and medical treatment as key regulatory targets. Many experts pointed out that regulatory standards should shift from principled requirements to quantifiable and enforceable specific indicators, such as clarifying the minimum size of the close button, color contrast, response time, etc. On this basis, the cost of illegal activities for enterprises and individuals should also be increased, and the entire chain should be held accountable.
"People's Daily Overseas Edition" (November 09, 2026, Page 08)
Reporter Huo Minhan
