AdMob ad load triggers unwanted redirect to Google Play Store
devflo...@gmail.com
On my Android device, when I load an AdMob ad in a Unity-based app, the app automatically opens the Google Play Store — usually showing the game Dark War Survival — even though the ad is never shown.
This happens right after calling Load(), not Show().
The log shows that the AdMob AdActivity triggers an intent to open the Play Store:
com.android.vending/com.google.android.finsky.activities.MarketDeepLinkHandlerActivity
followed by
ComponentInfo{com.readygo.dark.gp}
Additional details:
My app never calls startActivity() for Play Store or any URL.
Test ads work fine and do not cause this.
Blocking or reporting Dark War Survival in both AdMob and Unity Ads dashboards did not stop it.
I also confirmed that an older app I built years ago, which has not been updated recently, shows the same behavior. This suggests it’s not related to recent code changes.
Could this issue be related to my device environment (e.g., malicious overlay or adware)?
Is there any additional check I can perform, or any way to prevent such redirects on the app side until it’s resolved?
Please advise on how to completely block or report such ads, and whether there are recommended safeguards for developers.
Thank you.
Mobile Ads SDK Forum Advisor
Hi YongGil,
Thank you for contacting the Mobile Ads SDK support team.
It's always recommended to use the recent version which is shown in the release notes to avoid conflicts. As you mentioned, the issue is also occurring in the older version of your app. To investigate this further, we would need the following details:
- App ID and ad unit ID
- Mobile Ads SDK version
- Screen recording
- Charles session
- Device information
Kindly share above details via reply to the author option to do further investigation.
If the file(s) you are looking to share are less than 25mb in total you can attach them to this case on your next reply. If you are having trouble attaching your file to this case or if your file(s) are larger than 25mb, you can share your files with me by performing the following steps:
2. Fill out all fields, and attach your file(s).
3. Please reply back on this thread when you have uploaded your file(s). Please do not share this link.
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Mobile Ads SDK Team |
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[2025-10-15 04:41:57Z GMT] This message is in relation to case "ref:!00D1U01174p.!500Ht01vQq8L:ref" (ADR-00335534)
devflo...@gmail.com
Hi Mobile Ads SDK team,
Thanks for your response.
Here are the details you requested:
App ID: ca-app-pub-3695547080075494~5656867037
Ad unit IDs: ca-app-pub-3695547080075494/8222761486 / ca-app-pub-3695547080075494/7534761771
Mobile Ads SDK (Unity) version: 24.2.0, Unity 2022.3.62f2
Device: Google Pixel 6 / Mi Pad 6
Android version: Android 16 (app targetSdk 35)
What we’re seeing
The issue occurs not only in our app, but also in other apps on the Play Store that use AdMob, on this same Pixel 6 device.
Symptoms appear when an AdMob ad request loads: an unexpected full-screen ad (not requested by the foreground app) appears.
The same issue occurs on two of my devices (Pixel 6 and Mi Pad 6). On another test device, the issue does not reproduce.
This makes me suspect a device-level or OS-level interference (e.g., overlay / WebView injection / ad hijacking) rather than an integration bug in a specific app or SDK version.
Questions
Have there been any known cases of malware or launcher/overlay apps hijacking or injecting ads when AdMob ad requests occur?
If so, is there any recommended way for app developers to prevent or mitigate such attacks?
devflo...@gmail.com
Hi again,
I wanted to provide an update.
After factory-resetting my device and reinstalling apps directly from the Play Store, the same behavior still occurs — not only in our app, but also in many other apps that use AdMob.
This suggests the issue is unlikely to be caused by third-party apps or device settings, and may instead be related to AdMob itself or specific ad creatives being served.
Please let me know if you’d like me to capture additional logs or information from this clean environment.
devflo...@gmail.com
"Code": 0,
"Message": "Internal error.",
"Domain": "com.google.android.gms.ads",
"Cause": "null",
"Response Info": {
"Response ID": "3-_vaLicL4uKid4Pjc3V6AM",
"Mediation Adapter Class Name": "",
"Adapter Responses": [
{
"Adapter": "com.google.ads.mediation.admob.AdMobAdapter",
"Latency": 2895,
"Ad Source Name": "AdMob Network",
"Ad Source ID": "5450213213286189855",
"Ad Source Instance Name": "AdMob Network",
"Ad Source Instance ID": "4358581427175352",
"Credentials": {
"pubid": "ca-app-pub-3695547080075494\/7534761771\/cak=no_cache&cadc=2b&caqid=3-_vaOWTLuKbid4PyfXVwQI"
},
"Ad Error": {
"Code": 0,
"Message": "Internal error.",
"Domain": "com.google.android.gms.ads",
"Cause": "null"
}
}
],
"Response Extras": {
"mediation_group_name": "포모도로_AOS_보상형"
}
}
```
Mobile Ads SDK Forum Advisor
Hi,
Thank you for providing the details.
Based on the information shared, I tested the scenario using our Unity sample project. After the ad loads, it does not redirect to the Google Play Store. I was able to view the ads without any interruption.
Could you please try reproducing the issue using our sample project? If the issue still occurs, please share your sample project with us for further investigation.
Additionally, we have not received a screen recording capturing the issue. Kindly provide that as well so we can better understand the behavior.
If the file(s) you are looking to share are less than 25mb in total you can attach them to this case on your next reply. If you are having trouble attaching your file to this case or if your file(s) are larger than 25mb, you can share your files with me by performing the following steps:
1. Navigate to
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfkAiXMeYP-fw1W3Z-tT9uwmATEKO5X6S-th0gR2ezdKaaqfg/viewform?usp=pp_url&entry.400550049=Mobile+Ads+SDK&entry.460850823=500Ht00001vQq8LIAS&entry.80707362=003355342. Fill out all fields, and attach your file(s).
3. Please reply back on this thread when you have uploaded your file(s). Please do not share this link.
Thanks,
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Mobile Ads SDK Team |
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[2025-10-15 20:00:09Z GMT] This message is in relation to case "ref:!00D1U01174p.!500Ht01vQq8L:ref" (ADR-00335534)
Mobile Ads SDK Forum Advisor
Hi,
Thank you for sharing the details with us.
Kindly note that our support channel can only best assist you with regards to Google Mobile Ads SDK implementation and technical issues.
It has been observed that advertisements fail to load when utilizing your Bundle Identifier. However the Ads are loading successfully upon alteration of the Bundle Identifier. Therefore, it appears that the root of the issue lies within your Bundle Identifier.
To help resolve the issue you've been experiencing, I'm adding another AdMob Product Support Team with expertise in AdMob account side issues. You'll receive an email shortly with all the teams involved.
|
Mobile Ads SDK Team |
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[2025-10-16 08:22:14Z GMT] This message is in relation to case "ref:!00D1U01174p.!500Ht01vQq8L:ref" (ADR-00335534)
Mobile Ads SDK Forum Advisor
Hi,
Thank you for sharing the details with us.
Kindly ignore the previous response. We are currently investigating your issue and will get back to you shortly.
|
Mobile Ads SDK Team |
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[2025-10-16 08:29:09Z GMT] This message is in relation to case "ref:!00D1U01174p.!500Ht01vQq8L:ref" (ADR-00335534)
devflo...@gmail.com
It seems my post was deleted. If I removed it by mistake, please don’t worry about it.
Thank you for looking into this issue — I really appreciate your attention. I’ll be waiting for your reply as mentioned earlier.
Mobile Ads SDK Forum Advisor
Hi,
We've reviewed all the details you've provided but we are unable to reproduce the issue on our end. Could you please confirm whether this issue is occurring with a specific ad or across all ads? Since we’re unable to replicate the problem, we kindly request that you capture and share a Charles log to help us investigate further.
If the file(s) you are looking to share are less than 25mb in total you can attach them to this case on your next reply. If you are having trouble attaching your file to this case or if your file(s) are larger than 25mb, you can share your files with me by performing the following steps:
2. Fill out all fields, and attach your file(s).
3. Please reply back on this thread when you have uploaded your file(s). Please do not share this link.
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Mobile Ads SDK Team |
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[2025-10-16 21:25:48Z GMT] This message is in relation to case "ref:!00D1U01174p.!500Ht01vQq8L:ref" (ADR-00335534)
devflo...@gmail.com
Hi,
I’ve uploaded the Charles log file through the link you provided.
Thank you for looking into this issue — I really appreciate your continued support.
The Play Store popup issue is still occurring on my end. However, since Charles is intercepting the connection, the popup window only shows a “connection failed” page instead of the actual ad content.
Please check the uploaded log when possible.
Thank you!
Mobile Ads SDK Forum Advisor
Thank you for sharing the charles logs with us.
We are unable to see any ad request and response in the shared charlkes. It contains consent, impression related and other apis only and missing main ad request network call.
Can you double check and provide me another charles that includes the actual ad request and response?
If the file(s) you are looking to share are less than 25mb in total you can attach them to this case on your next reply. If you are having trouble attaching your file to this case or if your file(s) are larger than 25mb, you can share your files with me by performing the following steps:
1. Navigate to
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfkAiXMeYP-fw1W3Z-tT9uwmATEKO5X6S-th0gR2ezdKaaqfg/viewform?usp=pp_url&entry.400550049=Mobile+Ads+SDK&entry.460850823=500Ht00001vQq8LIAS&entry.80707362=003355342. Fill out all fields, and attach your file(s).
3. Please reply back on this thread when you have uploaded your file(s). Please do not share this link.
Thanks,
|
Mobile Ads SDK Team |
Feedback
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[2025-10-17 15:09:30Z GMT] This message is in relation to case "ref:!00D1U01174p.!500Ht01vQq8L:ref" (ADR-00335534)
devflo...@gmail.com
Thanks for the follow-up.
I’ve captured and uploaded a new Charles session recorded at the exact moment the Play Store popup appeared. Along with it, I also included:
- A screenshot of the Charles timeline at that moment
- The Logcat snippet showing the AdMob load failure
- A short screen-capture video reproducing the issue
Just to confirm — my Charles SSL Proxying is already set to *:*, and I can see ad-related domains like googleads.g.doubleclick.net and pagead2.googlesyndication.com in the log. Since the SSL proxying setup is already global, I’m wondering if there’s anything else required to capture the actual ad request/response in this case.
Please let me know if you’re still unable to see the ad network calls or if there’s anything specific I should adjust.
Thank you!
devflo...@gmail.com
The issue appears on two of my devices; I’ll keep the Advertising ID enabled on another device for testing.
Mobile Ads SDK Forum Advisor
I checked your other Charles logs but I still can't see the actual ad request, it should come under the gamepad directory which contains the entire ad request and response.
If you are experiencing an issue with SSL can you tell me which mediation partner you are getting this issue from as I can see mediation group is enabled for Meta and Unity ads and is this reproducible using the Pixel 6 emulator or is it only happening with devices?
Thanks,
|
Mobile Ads SDK Team |
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[2025-10-17 21:55:52Z GMT] This message is in relation to case "ref:!00D1U01174p.!500Ht01vQq8L:ref" (ADR-00335534)
Rakib Khan
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