- Microsoft has contacted LG regarding a McAfee pop-up that appears through the monitor manufacturer’s app (which is itself installed through Windows Update).
- As an “immediate next step”, LG has disabled this pop-up
- However, there are still issues to resolve around the automatic installation of the LG monitor app and the way Windows Update operates with third-party software.
Microsoft has fixed a controversial situation where Windows 11 users with LG monitors were receiving a McAfee antivirus pop-up and that ad has now been removed from the operating system, but there’s still more Microsoft needs to do here.
Windows Latest noted that Pavan Davuluri, head of Windows at Microsoft, pointed out what happened in X.
Responding to a nudge from Epic’s Tim Sweeney on the matter, Davuluri said, “We’ve connected with the LG team and, as an immediate next step, they’ve agreed to disable the McAfee pop-up in their app. We appreciate LG working with us toward a shared goal of a better experience for our mutual customers. We’ll continue to improve here with our ecosystem partners.”
Latest videos ofTechnologyRadar
In case you missed this story from earlier in the week, Windows 11 users with an LG display are reportedly getting an LG monitor app (from the Microsoft Store) automatically installed on their PCs via Windows Update simply after plugging in the monitor.
The real problem was that after this, the aforementioned McAfee pop-up (promoting a trial for the antivirus) repeatedly bothered those users, with the ad delivered via the LG monitor app. So what Microsoft is telling us here is that, as an immediate first step, the McAfee pop-up is no longer part of the LG Windows app and will no longer obscure the desktops of any LG monitor owners.
However, Windows Update is presumably still channeling the monitoring application (without pop-ups) and hopefully Microsoft’s next step will be to fix this issue.
Analysis: software giants in glass houses?
Windows Update really shouldn’t install any third-party software without user permission, that’s clear (or your own). It’s fine to mark available updates, wherever they come from or what hardware they’re for, but highlighting them is one thing and moving ahead with an automatic installation is another.
Okay, so LG agreed to disable this pop-up, and it’s a good thing this happened quickly, as it was, of course, a huge hassle. In fact, it’s very worrying that this could happen (and in case you missed it, LG TVs have also come under fire this week).
LG had already addressed this controversy with a rather lengthy statement that read: “LG Electronics reiterates that McAfee is not installed automatically and is never installed without explicit user consent. 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 gives consent. Under no circumstances is McAfee installed automatically or without the user’s authorization. LG Monitor App Installer does not access, collect or transmit any customer personal data.”
What this seems to say is that the actual McAfee antivirus application is not installed without consent. It is not denied that the McAfee pop-up appeared without consent, or that the LG Monitor application is installed in the background on Windows without the user’s knowledge. It just points out that the LG Monitor app is “distributed through Microsoft’s official Windows distribution process,” as if that makes everything okay, or somehow not LG’s fault.
Of course, it’s also Microsoft’s fault: both parties must take responsibility and fix not only the McAfee pop-up that appears, but also the LG Monitor app that installs automatically simply when a monitor is connected to a Windows 11 PC. (Which is reportedly the case, I might add: I haven’t experienced this, as I don’t have an LG display, but there are a lot of comments suggesting that’s exactly what happens.)
In short, the immediate disabling of the McAfee test popup is a start, but we need a quick follow-up that addresses the LG app itself and how it is handled in Windows 11. And, more broadly, how third-party apps in general interact with Windows Update, because as already noted, this situation should never have been allowed to happen in the first place (regardless of what LG, or any other hardware partner, is doing with its apps).
Additionally, there is no shortage of people on Reddit pointing out that Microsoft has been interested enough in acting here, but not so interested in curbing its own advertising-related excesses in Windows 11.
As one Microsoft Redditor says: “Now all they need to do is crack down on their own bloatware…”
Although, to be fair to Microsoft, it is acting to curb some of the promotional and upsell noise that Windows 11 has been associated with. However, more work certainly needs to be done on this front.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to receive news, reviews and opinions from our experts in your feeds.
The best laptops for all budgets
