Microsoft has responded to customer complaints over LG’s Monitor App Installer. The software giant has asked the South Korean company to remove McAfee promotional pop-ups from the app. Confirming the move with a post on the microblogging site X (formerly Twitter), Pavan Davuluri, Microsoft’s Executive Vice President of Windows and Devices, said LG has agreed to disable the McAfee pop-up as an immediate step after reports that the app was being installed through Windows Update on some PCs connected to LG monitors.Responding to the issue on social media, Pavan Davuluri wrote, “Thanks again for bringing this to our attention. We’ve connected with the team at LG and as an immediate next step, they have agreed to disable the McAfee pop-up from their app. We appreciate LG working with us toward a shared goal of a better experience for our mutual customers. We will keep improving here with our ecosystem partners.”Davuluri’s response came after a user shared a screenshot of the pop-up and wrote on X, “PSA: Do NOT buy an LG monitor, it automatically downloaded an app that gives me pop ups for their own apps and McAfee. This can’t be legal.”Commenting on the post, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney tagged Davuluri and wrote, “Many reports of this occurring with arbitrary hardware.”Replying to Sweeney, Davuluri wrote: “Thanks, Tim. The team is looking into it.”The response comes after users reported that LG’s Monitor App Installer appeared on their Windows systems following monitor driver updates and displayed a McAfee free trial advertisement. While LG said McAfee is “never installed without the user’s explicit consent,” Microsoft said it has worked with the company to improve the experience for shared customers.The statement came days after users raised concerns on Reddit and YouTube, where several reports claimed LG’s Monitor App Installer was automatically installed through Windows Update and repeatedly displayed advertisements for a 30-day McAfee trial.
What users said about the pop-up ‘issue’ on LG monitors
The issue gained attention after Reddit users reported that connecting certain LG monitors resulted in Windows silently installing the LG Monitor App Installer. According to user reports, the application later displayed McAfee advertisements during system startup.YouTube channel Gamers Nexus also reproduced the behaviour on an LG UltraGear 34GX900A-B monitor, reporting that the McAfee pop-up appeared on most system boots during testing. In addition to McAfee, the publication reported occasionally seeing promotions for LG Switch, LG Calibration Studio, LG Dual Controller and LG Channels.Microsoft documentation for device metadata notes that companion apps linked to hardware devices can be installed automatically when compatible devices are connected to a Windows PC under certain conditions.Although Microsoft confirmed the McAfee advertisement will be removed, reports noted that concerns remain over the automatic installation of companion apps through Windows Update.According to Microsoft’s developer documentation, Universal Windows Platform (UWP) device apps can automatically install when supported hardware is connected to a Windows PC if certain setup requirements are met. The documentation also states, “The automatic installation feature does not provide a notification to the user when the app is installed. Some users may find this experience confusing and frustrating and give your app a bad rating.”Similar automatic companion app installations have previously been reported for hardware from companies including Razer, Logitech, Asus and Gigabyte.Users who already have LG Monitor App Installer installed can remove it by going to Settings > Apps > Installed apps, locating the app and uninstalling it from Windows.
