Google Pop Up..what the hey!

[Android Central Question]

How do I stop the Google "congratulations" pops up that seems to lock up my S 5 for several minutes and nothing deletes it until it removes itself.

 

[Morty2264]

Welcome to the forums! Do you have all of your important information (photos, etc) backed up? If so, you may consider doing a factory reset.

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! Does this only happen while you're using your browser, or does it also happen on the homescreen, or while using other apps?

 

[belodion]

Since I've just had occasion to link the following Guide, I'll do the same here while it's still Clipboard-pastable: https://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?t=630081

 

[Roy G1]

Welcome to Android Central! Does this only happen while you're using your browser, or does it also happen on the homescreen, or while using other apps?

It happens from my desktop when I want to go to my ATT web or Yahoo browser. Screen locks with the Google screen with the internet web site in the background. You are asked to proceed with "OK" which I don't. After using an Android Optimizer to clean and turning on off a couple times it finally will time out. Is aggravating as I'm not a fan of anything Google.

 

[B. Diddy]

It's most likely that this isn't from Google -- it sounds like some browser popup ad that is trying to fool you into tapping a link. I suspect that your browser's homepage has been modified by some app or site to redirect to a website which has these popups. Go to Settings>Apps, select your browser, and Clear Cache/Clear Data. If you can, open your browser, tap Menu>Settings>Privacy, and clear all browsing data "from the beginning of time." If you're using Chrome, do the same on your desktop Chrome browser, in case it's syncing the site to the mobile browser. Now see if the problem continues.

 

[Aquila]

Yep you downloaded something phishy, not from Google. The "android optimizer" is also almost certainly garbage - those don't actually do anything useful.