Popups and Prompts Are Ruining the Web (and Our Sanity)
Modern websites are filled with popups and intrusive prompts that frustrate users and erode trust. This article explains why companies like Google and Facebook should be careful.
By. Jacob
Edited: 2025-04-23 11:35
Prompts are disruptive to the browsing experience and can actually cause significant cognitive strain in users, while severely harming the reputation of the prompting company. I know this from personal experience, because they tend to mildly enrage me. And it's not just the prompting third-party service I am annoyed with; it is also the website that decides to implement it. I do not appreciate such nonsensical and intrusive popups.
The "Sign in with Google" popup that we see on many sites is both obnoxious and provocative. Most of us might have a Google account, but that does not necessarily mean we want to log in everywhere using it. It feels invasive, and it feels like Google is twisting your arm to force you to log in and make the popup go away.
I view such third-party popups as a type of abusive behavior. Companies that offer these "prompting" mechanisms must realize that people will develop very negative attitudes toward their company as a result, and these attitudes are not easy to change or improve once they have taken root.
I think we can all agree that few things on the Internet are so irritating — it is predatory and goes against basic ideas of how to properly treat your users, and therefore also breaks with what's considered good UX.
Google should not be allowed to clutter other people's websites with this junk, and I cannot comprehend why website owners even remotely tolerate it — if you use Google as a login on your website, please consider disabling this obnoxious malware from your website.
I wonder when and how things started to go so wrong.
Users are constantly prompted by nonsensical things like cookies (GDPR), permission to access users' location, offers to translate web page content, prompts to store passwords in the browser, and permission to install app versions of websites. All this should, in my opinion, also be illegal. Popups in general should be illegal.
Cookie banners
This is probably one situation where I'd prefer a built-in browser mechanism, and we have actually had that for many years, so there was probably never a need for cookie popups in the first place. Browser developers could just expose some sort of API to allow web developers to better handle cookies in the browser.
Consent management platforms are unacceptable and unnecessary, and they might even cost website owners money.
Allow location access
Rarely do websites actually need access to our location. For example, a maps service might need it, but practically every other site doesn't. This might just be abused for tracking purposes and could be built into a centralized "permissions" API of the browser. It is irritating that it results in an extra popup.
Built-in browser translation
It's fine to have a button to translate a page in the browser UI, but it should never prompt the user about the possibility. It's irritating having to turn it off manually every time you install a browser.
Storing passwords in the browser
In the past, this has been an insecure way to handle passwords, and it has had various security issues. I have never come to trust it, and I am irritated by the prompting. I do not know if it can be trusted now, but using a password manager like KeePassXC is probably the better choice anyway.
It's also fairly redundant, as once you are logged in, your session typically should not expire.
Permission to install app version of website
Reddit has been notorious for this. But they are more notorious for shadow banning innocent users.
No! I do not want to install an app just to browse your website. I am using a browser for a reason. Don't irritate me with this obnoxious popup!
Microsoft’s UX Failures: A Warning to Google, Facebook, and others
If anyone doubts that users are fed up with tech giants ignoring basic UX principles, just take a look at this article I wrote about Windows 11. It outlines a series of frustrating and broken features that Microsoft continues to push on users — from nonsensical interface changes to forced updates and embedded ads. It’s no wonder so many IT enthusiasts are increasingly irritated with the platform.
Microsoft has shown exactly what happens when a company assumes users will just accept whatever nonsense is thrown their way. Spoiler: they don’t. Many actively resist, delay upgrades, or jump ship entirely. This isn’t just about Windows — it’s about disrespecting the user experience over and over until people finally snap.
Google and Facebook are on similarly thin ice. If they keep pushing invasive prompts, manipulative UI, and privacy-hostile defaults, they could end up just as widely disliked. Just because people tolerate something today doesn’t mean they will tomorrow. Companies that carelessly annoy their users risk becoming the next punchline in UX horror stories.
Facebook's support system is a disaster for users facing real issues that don’t fit neatly into their predefined categories. For example, if a user's account is hacked and the attacker links a rogue Instagram account — which then gets suspended — Facebook may suspend both accounts. When the user tries to recover their Meta account through facebook.com/hacked, they’re instructed to first appeal the suspension of the Instagram account. But the user has no access to that Instagram account, because it was created or attached by the hacker. This leaves the user in a surreal limbo where no actual help is available. There’s no human contact, no way to explain the situation, and no escape from the automated forms. It’s a nightmare engineered by a trillion-dollar company that somehow can’t be bothered to care.
Things like this tend to turn users against you, and it is going to be very difficult to regain your users' trust. I still hold grudges over Microsoft ditching support for old e-mail clients, and not supporting Exchange in Thunderbird.
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