From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.ubuntu

Hello, I still have Ubuntu partition but now just want to ask an off
topic question here because people in this group have good answers for questions on a range of tech topics.

My stock Samsung Galaxy A16 SM-A166U1 T-Mobile phone (nothing Ubuntu)
has the following problem: I often keep the phone on mute, and
sometimes it all the sudden starts making all sorts of noise for maybe
30 seconds - until I turn it off. The noise is some jive ass
advertisement or something. I check and verify the phone is still muted
and it is still muted. How is the phone able to start playing some
content when it is muted? Also this happens with out me doing anything
with the phone - just carrying it in my pocket. WTF?
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From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.ubuntu

On Tue, 6/9/2026 2:23 AM, bilsch01 wrote:

Hello, I still have Ubuntu partition but now just want to ask an off topic question here because people in this group have good answers for questions on a range of tech topics.

My stock Samsung Galaxy A16 SM-A166U1 T-Mobile phone (nothing Ubuntu) has the  following problem: I often keep the phone on mute, and sometimes it all the sudden starts making all sorts of noise for maybe 30 seconds - until I turn it off. The noise is some jive ass advertisement or something. I check and verify the phone is still muted and it is still muted. How is the phone able to start playing some content when it is muted? Also this happens with out me doing anything with the phone - just carrying it in my pocket.  WTF?

"Samsung Galaxy A16: How to stop pop up ads Samsung"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWxR1Ii1d8w

Now, before you view that video, it's just filled
with the most obvious kinds of solutions.

The people who prepare items like this (push notifications),
are aware of videos like the one in the example. There is
no guarantee, that a compromised app on your phone, would
not be able to continue doing this.

I had the same problem, with a recent request for some
help with Push Notifications on Windows. You can attempt
to do the obvious things, but they're not going to work.
For example, execute the "Reset" function on the web browser ?
Useless.

There should be a limit, on the number of items where
audio output is even possible. Browsers have audio capability.
And as a user, you are likely to want that to continue to
work (so you can watch movies on the smartphone). Trying to manage
the situation with permissions is unlikely to work.

And if you "half-fix it", maybe the idle power consumption
of the smartphone goes up and the battery does not seem to
last as long as it should. And it could be something running
in the background and up to no good.

Paul
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From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.ubuntu

On Mon, 8 Jun 2026 23:23:22 -0700, bilsch01 <[email protected]> wrote:
Hello, I still have Ubuntu partition but now just want to ask an off
topic question here because people in this group have good answers for >questions on a range of tech topics.

My stock Samsung Galaxy A16 SM-A166U1 T-Mobile phone (nothing Ubuntu)
has the following problem: I often keep the phone on mute, and
sometimes it all the sudden starts making all sorts of noise for maybe
30 seconds - until I turn it off. The noise is some jive ass
advertisement or something. I check and verify the phone is still muted
and it is still muted. How is the phone able to start playing some
content when it is muted? Also this happens with out me doing anything
with the phone - just carrying it in my pocket. WTF?

On Android, "muted" can still leave media volume separate from ringer and notification volume. So the first boring check is: while the noise is playing, press a volume key, open the little volume panel, and expand it. See whether "Media" is up even though the phone is otherwise muted.

If it sounds like an advert starting by itself, I would next look for the app that is allowed to do it:

Settings -> Notifications -> Advanced settings -> Notification history

Turn that on if it is not already enabled, then check it right after the next incident. Also check recently installed apps, browsers with site notifications,
and anything with "appear on top" / overlay permission.

A useful isolation test is Safe mode. If it stops in Safe mode, a third-party app is almost certainly the culprit. If it still happens in Safe mode, then look harder at Samsung/system settings, alarms, emergency alerts, Bixby/Routines, or carrier/T-Mobile software.

I would not start with a factory reset. First try to identify the app from notification history, Battery usage, and the most recently installed or updated apps.
--
TheLastSysop <[email protected]>
"I survived the great rm -rf / rehearsal and all I got was this .signature." --- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.ubuntu

On 6/9/2026 2:08 PM, TheLastSysop wrote:

On Mon, 8 Jun 2026 23:23:22 -0700, bilsch01 <[email protected]> wrote:
Hello, I still have Ubuntu partition but now just want to ask an off
topic question here because people in this group have good answers for
questions on a range of tech topics.

My stock Samsung Galaxy A16 SM-A166U1 T-Mobile phone (nothing Ubuntu)
has the following problem: I often keep the phone on mute, and
sometimes it all the sudden starts making all sorts of noise for maybe
30 seconds - until I turn it off. The noise is some jive ass
advertisement or something. I check and verify the phone is still muted
and it is still muted. How is the phone able to start playing some
content when it is muted? Also this happens with out me doing anything
with the phone - just carrying it in my pocket. WTF?

On Android, "muted" can still leave media volume separate from ringer and notification volume. So the first boring check is: while the noise is playing,
press a volume key, open the little volume panel, and expand it. See whether "Media" is up even though the phone is otherwise muted.

If it sounds like an advert starting by itself, I would next look for the app that is allowed to do it:

Settings -> Notifications -> Advanced settings -> Notification history

Turn that on if it is not already enabled, then check it right after the next incident. Also check recently installed apps, browsers with site notifications,
and anything with "appear on top" / overlay permission.

A useful isolation test is Safe mode. If it stops in Safe mode, a third-party
app is almost certainly the culprit. If it still happens in Safe mode, then look harder at Samsung/system settings, alarms, emergency alerts, Bixby/Routines, or carrier/T-Mobile software.

I would not start with a factory reset. First try to identify the app from notification history, Battery usage, and the most recently installed or updated
apps.

Thanks for the info.
Ok, notification history has been ON.
So, after next occurance, I will look for the latest thing and see if it
is the current time. Will that identify the culprit?
More questions to come as needed.
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From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.ubuntu

On Tue, 9 Jun 2026 18:45:55 -0700, bilsch01 <[email protected]> wrote:
On 6/9/2026 2:08 PM, TheLastSysop wrote:

On Mon, 8 Jun 2026 23:23:22 -0700, bilsch01 <[email protected]> wrote:
Hello, I still have Ubuntu partition but now just want to ask an off
topic question here because people in this group have good answers for
questions on a range of tech topics.

My stock Samsung Galaxy A16 SM-A166U1 T-Mobile phone (nothing Ubuntu)
has the following problem: I often keep the phone on mute, and
sometimes it all the sudden starts making all sorts of noise for maybe
30 seconds - until I turn it off. The noise is some jive ass
advertisement or something. I check and verify the phone is still muted
and it is still muted. How is the phone able to start playing some
content when it is muted? Also this happens with out me doing anything
with the phone - just carrying it in my pocket. WTF?

On Android, "muted" can still leave media volume separate from ringer and
notification volume. So the first boring check is: while the noise is
playing,
press a volume key, open the little volume panel, and expand it. See whether
"Media" is up even though the phone is otherwise muted.

If it sounds like an advert starting by itself, I would next look for the app
that is allowed to do it:

Settings -> Notifications -> Advanced settings -> Notification history >>
Turn that on if it is not already enabled, then check it right after the next
incident. Also check recently installed apps, browsers with site
notifications,
and anything with "appear on top" / overlay permission.

A useful isolation test is Safe mode. If it stops in Safe mode, a third-
party
app is almost certainly the culprit. If it still happens in Safe mode, then >> look harder at Samsung/system settings, alarms, emergency alerts,
Bixby/Routines, or carrier/T-Mobile software.

I would not start with a factory reset. First try to identify the app from >> notification history, Battery usage, and the most recently installed or
updated
apps.

Thanks for the info.
Ok, notification history has been ON.
So, after next occurance, I will look for the latest thing and see if it
is the current time. Will that identify the culprit?
More questions to come as needed.

Yes, if the noise was triggered by a notification, Notification history should show the app and the time. Check it immediately after the next incident and look for anything at the same minute.

Two catches:

1. If it is media playback started by an app, it may not appear as a normal notification. While it is making noise, press a volume button and expand
the volume panel. Android/Samsung will often show the app that owns the current media session.

2. Some apps use browser/site notifications or overlays. If Notification history is empty at that time, check Chrome/Browser site notifications, recently updated apps, and Settings -> Apps -> Special access -> Appear on
top.

A good next isolation step is Safe mode. If the problem does not happen in Safe
mode, it is almost certainly one of the installed apps rather than the phone's mute setting itself.
--
TheLastSysop <[email protected]>
"I survived the great rm -rf / rehearsal and all I got was this .signature." --- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2