Spin The Lucky Wheel ads: what they are and how to stop them
Spin The Lucky Wheel is a scam prize page that asks you to share it with 10 friends, give your phone number and download a file; it is a web page, not a virus. Close it, clear the browser's data, and scan only if you ran a file it offered.
Facts checked October 6, 2026. Removal steps tested on Windows 11 (26H2) and checked against Microsoft's and the browser makers' current documentation.
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Spin The Lucky Wheel: summary
| Type | Scam prize page (a spinning wheel) that spreads by shared links and ads; not a program and not a virus |
|---|---|
| Risk | Medium: nothing installs by itself, but it pushes shares, a phone number and a download of an unwanted Windows file |
| Symptoms | A Facebook-styled "Spin the wheel to pick your reward" page; always another free spin; a request to tell 10 friends on WhatsApp; pop-ups and redirects afterwards |
| How to get rid of it | Close the tab; clear the browser's data (Safari on iPhone: Settings > Apps > Safari); scan and uninstall only if you ran a downloaded file |
| Our check (6 October 2026) | No live address to test; nothing opened or installed. Sources: Malwarebytes (2015), Deccan Chronicle (2016) and our 2019 pictures. One quiet look would clear nothing |
| First seen | A shortened link spread from 7 July 2015 (Malwarebytes); our guide is from 9 December 2019 |
| Removal | Scan the PC with security software to find and remove the malware and anything installed with it. Fortect scans Windows for malware and repairs the system files and settings it damaged. Remove it nowTo use the full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Fortect. The scan is free. |
Show 8 more facts
| Detection | No Microsoft detection name is known: we found none in the sources we read and scanned no sample. Malwarebytes detected the file Flashplayerupdate-setup.exe as PUP.Optional.DownloadAdmin in 2015 |
|---|---|
| Name | Spin The Lucky Wheel ads |
| Evidence | 2 write-ups by security sites; details still limited |
| Ads shown as | Ads injected into normal pages |
| Browsers | Chrome, Edge and Firefox |
| Distribution | Typically pages saying you need an extension, bundled installers, malicious ads and copies of real extensions |
| Damage | Ads injected into pages, browsing history and searches collected, redirects to risky sites |
| Facts checked | 6 October 2026 |
Facts checked on 6 October 2026 against Malwarebytes' 2015 report, Deccan Chronicle's 2016 report, Apple's iPhone Safari help, Adobe's Flash end-of-life page and our own 2019 pictures. We found no live wheel page to test and installed nothing.
What Spin The Lucky Wheel is, and what the name covers
"Spin The Lucky Wheel" is a prize page, not a program. It is a Facebook-styled web page with a spinning wheel that "wins" you a phone or a watch if you spend a few minutes sharing it, giving your number and clicking on. Nothing is installed by opening it; the harm comes from the file or app it sends you on to, and from what you type.
- 1
A link reaches you
Malwarebytes traced the 2015 version to a shortened link that sent people through a tracking address to the wheel page; the link was passed around on WhatsApp. A 2016 report of an Amazon-branded copy also arrived as a message from a friend. Ads on other sites are a second route in our 2019 guide; we did not test it.
- 2
The wheel page opens
It is dressed as a Facebook post: a banner saying you were chosen, a count of people who "like this" and comments from happy "winners". The picture at the top of this page is the 2019 copy of it.
- 3
You always win, and the prize is only "possible"
Malwarebytes saw "You won 1 free extra spin!" on every play, then "Your possible prize: the new Samsung S6". The wheel is a script; the result does not depend on where it stops.
- 4
You pay with your contacts and your number
The page asks you to tell 10 friends on WhatsApp within 300 seconds (the timer did nothing, says Malwarebytes), then to verify your phone number on the next page.
- 5
The next page changes every time
Malwarebytes landed on a file called Flashplayerupdate-setup.exe, a dating site, a Flash games site and a message to "upgrade our mobile". A 2016 copy sent people to install a game from Google Play and then did nothing.
- Kind of thing
- A scam page chain that earns from shares, clicks and downloads; a potentially unwanted program only if you run the file it hands out
- Other names seen
- "Lucky Wheel" (Malwarebytes), "Amazon BigBillionDay Lucky Wheel" (Deccan Chronicle, 2016), "Vip Lucky Gifts Center" and "I'm lucky winner spin wheel $1000 reward" (a reader, 2020)
- Where it runs
- Any browser on a PC or a phone. The 2015 chain ended in a Windows .exe file, which an iPhone cannot run
- Who runs it
- Not known. The page spreads by link, and we found no single address for it that is still live
- What it needs from you
- Clicks, shares to your contacts, your phone number and, at the end, a download
Is Spin The Lucky Wheel dangerous?
What we could check on 6 October 2026
There is no single address to test: the wheel has lived on many addresses and our 2019 guide names none. We opened nothing and installed nothing; below is what the sources and our own picture show.
Spin The Lucky Wheel · Malwarebytes 2015, Deccan Chronicle 2016, our 2019 pictures · 6 October 2026
- Live addressNone known. The 2015 link and tracking address are named by Malwarebytes, but we did not open them; short links and ad pages of this kind are rotated or switched off, and a quiet visit would prove nothing.
- Notification requestNot tested. Neither the 2015 nor the 2016 report mentions one.
- Redirects and pop-upsReported, not tested. Malwarebytes saw different destinations every time it went back: a download, a dating page, a games site.
- The pictures on this pageWe opened all three 2019 pictures. They show two versions of the same wheel page; none shows a scan result or an infected computer.
- The downloadFlashplayerupdate-setup.exe was detected as PUP.Optional.DownloadAdmin by Malwarebytes in 2015. We have no sample and ran no scan.
- Flash itselfAdobe ended support for Flash Player on 31 December 2020 and blocked Flash content from 12 January 2021. A "Flash update" offered today is not from Adobe.
Not cleared We cannot say that any wheel page is gone. The format is easy to copy and move, and these pages show different things by country, device and visit. Treat the page as a scam wherever you meet it.
Where the wheel came from, and what has changed
7 July 2015
A shortened link starts spreading
Malwarebytes says the link had 432,205 clicks by the time it wrote about it on 15 July. The page promised one free spin and a phone, and asked you to tell 10 friends on WhatsApp.
From our 2019 guide: the wheel page and its "Welcome to Lucky Wheel!" box (the text matches what Malwarebytes quoted in 2015). The woman is a stock photo added by the guide's editor; she is not part of the page. It is not a capture from 2026. 11 April 2016
A reader reports no prize and a slow PC
A reader wrote that he shared the link as asked, never received the Samsung phone he "won", and that his computer began acting strangely afterwards. We cannot tell whether the two were connected.
19 September 2016
An Amazon-branded copy
Deccan Chronicle described a WhatsApp message with a link to a "BigBillionDay" wheel. After a free spin it showed a Lenovo phone, asked for five shares and then for the install of a game from Google Play. Nothing followed.
9 December 2019
Our guide is published
We described the wheel as adware and gave removal steps. The picture at the top of this page comes from it.
26 January 2020
A reader on an iPhone
A reader asked how to stop "I'm lucky winner spin wheel $1000 reward" pages on an iPhone, under the name "Vip Lucky Gifts Center".
12 January 2021
Flash stops working
Adobe blocked Flash content from running in Flash Player. Any later prompt to "update Flash" is a trick.
6 October 2026
Our new check
We rewrote this guide from the sources above. We found no wheel page to test.
The wheel's messages, and what each one is for
None of these messages is real. A web page cannot know that you were "chosen", and no prize is released after a share. The messages below were quoted by Malwarebytes in 2015, by Deccan Chronicle in 2016 or are visible in our pictures.
| What the page says | What it pretends to be | What it really does |
|---|---|---|
| Congratulations User! You have been chosen for today's special reward in Omaha. Spin the wheel to pick your reward! | A local draw with your name on it | The banner names a place, as our 2019 pictures show, so that the offer looks meant for you. We do not know how the page picks the place |
| Only this Tuesday we give our members 1 free spin | A members' offer | A line of the page, shown to every visitor; the offer is not tied to any membership we could find |
| You won 1 free extra spin! | A lucky break | Shown on every play, says Malwarebytes, to keep you clicking |
| Congratulations! Your possible prize: the new Samsung S6! | A win | Only a "possible" prize. Nothing is ever sent |
| Tell 10 friends on WhatsApp about the Lucky Wheel! (valid for 300 seconds) | A condition of the prize | Spreads the link in your name. The timer did nothing; it could expire and the page still went on |
| Verify your phone number on the next page | A security check | Leads to a download, a dating page or a games site. A number typed into such a page may be used for unwanted calls or messages; we did not test where it goes |
| Download available / Save File Flashplayerupdate-setup.exe | A prize file or a Flash update | A Windows installer named like a Flash update. Malwarebytes detected it as PUP.Optional.DownloadAdmin; Flash itself ended in 2020 |
| Upgrade your mobile to the latest version | A phone update | A message that reached a desktop browser too, which shows it is only text on a page |
The real risks, from most to least serious
"Spin The Lucky Wheel virus" is how readers describe it. The page itself is not a virus. These are the ways it can hurt you.
- High
Running the file the wheel hands out
The only file the 2015 report names is a Windows installer posing as a Flash update. A program from a prize page is how adware, toolbars and worse get onto a PC. Flash is no longer supported, so no real update exists.
- Medium
Giving your phone number
The page asks for it before it lets you "claim" a prize, and the sources do not say what happens to it. Expect that it can be used or sold for unwanted calls and messages.
- Medium
Spamming your contacts
The share step posts the link under your name. Your friends receive it from someone they trust, which is why it spreads.
- Medium
Installing an app to "unlock" the prize
The 2016 copy asked for a game from Google Play and then did nothing. Installing apps for a prize earns money for whoever set up the offer, and each app can ask for permissions and show ads.
- Low
The ads and redirects themselves
Our 2019 guide said they lead to unsafe sites. Possible, but the harm comes from what you click or run there, not from the page opening.
How Spin The Lucky Wheel got into your browser
Our 2019 guide said adware on the computer was behind the wheel. The sources we read show something simpler: the wheel is a web page that people pass on and that ad networks route visitors to. Adware is one possible cause of repeated pop-ups, not the usual one.
| What you see | Most likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The wheel opens after you tap a link from a friend, a message or a short link | The link itself. The 2015 and 2016 versions both spread by WhatsApp | Close the tab. Do not forward it. Tell the friend their account sent a scam |
| It opens after you click a video, download or button on another site | That site's ad network sent you through a chain of redirects | Close the tab or enter a new address in the search field. Nothing needs removing |
| It, or other prize pages, open on many unrelated sites, or ordinary words turn into links | An unwanted browser extension, or a program that came with free software (adware) | Check extensions and installed apps, then reset the browser (sections below) |
| It comes back each time you start the browser | The browser reopening the tabs from last time, or a start page that is set to it | Close all its tabs before quitting, check the browser's start-up setting, then check extensions |
| It only shows on your phone's browser | A link or an ad in that browser | Clear Safari's history and website data (iPhone section below) or Chrome's site data on Android |
How to remove Spin The Lucky Wheel
How to remove the Spin The Lucky Wheel ads extension
Do the browser steps in every browser and profile on the PC, then check Windows for the program that installed the extension.
Which browser shows the ads?
On an Android phone
In Chrome tap the three-dot menu > Settings > Site settings and review Notifications; then open Settings > Privacy and security and delete browsing data. Look in Settings > Apps for apps you did not install, especially a game installed for a prize.
Remove extensions you do not recognise
Paste
chrome://extensionsinto the address bar and click Remove on anything you did not install yourself, especially anything named easyCalc; its Details page shows the publisher.Full procedure with screenshots: Remove a browser extension
Clear the site data
Press Ctrl + Shift + Delete, choose All time, tick Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files, and click Delete data.
Reset Chrome
Open Settings > Reset settings > Restore settings to their original defaults and confirm with Reset settings. This resets the start page, search engine and pinned tabs and turns off extensions; bookmarks and saved passwords stay.
Full procedure with screenshots: Reset a browser and fix a hijacked search engine
Remove extensions you do not recognise
Paste
edge://extensionsinto the address bar and click Remove under anything you did not install yourself.Full procedure with screenshots: Remove a browser extension
Clear the site data
Open Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Delete browsing data > Choose what to clear, set All time, tick Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files, and click Clear now.
Reset Edge
Open Settings > Reset settings > Restore settings to their default values and confirm with Reset. Extensions are turned off and the start page goes back to default; favourites, history and saved passwords stay.
Full procedure with screenshots: Reset a browser and fix a hijacked search engine
Remove add-ons you do not recognise
Paste
about:addonsinto the address bar, open Extensions, and choose Remove from the three-dot menu of anything you did not install yourself.Full procedure with screenshots: Remove a browser extension
Clear cookies and site data
Open Settings > Privacy & Security > Cookies and Site Data > Clear Data, tick both boxes and click Clear.
Refresh Firefox
Open the menu > Help > More troubleshooting information and click Refresh Firefox. Add-ons and custom settings are removed and the home page goes back to default; bookmarks, history and passwords stay.
Full procedure with screenshots: Reset a browser and fix a hijacked search engine
Remove extensions you do not recognise
In Safari > Settings > Extensions, select anything you did not install yourself and click Uninstall.
Clear the site data
In Safari > Settings > Privacy > Manage Website Data, remove the site's data, or use History > Clear History > all history. To empty the cache as well, turn on Show features for web developers in Settings > Advanced and choose Develop > Empty Caches.
Check the Mac for apps from the ads
Ads also target Mac users with fake players and "cleaners". In Finder, choose Go > Applications, look for entries you did not install, and drag them to the Bin (or right-click and choose Move to Bin). In System Settings > General > Login Items & Extensions, remove unknown items. To remove an app fully, use Go > Go to Folder and check
/Library/Application Support, then/Library/LaunchAgentsand/Library/LaunchDaemons, plus~/Library/LaunchAgents: delete folders and.plistfiles with the same unknown name, then empty the Bin.
Then, whichever browser you use
Step 1: Uninstall programs you did not mean to install
Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps in Windows 11, or Settings > Apps > Apps & features in Windows 10, and sort the list by install date. Look at what appeared around the day the problem started and uninstall every program you do not recognise or did not choose.
Free converters, PDF and video tools, "system optimizers" and unknown browsers are the usual carriers of Spin The Lucky Wheel ads. If a name is unclear, search for it before you remove it, so you do not uninstall a driver or a Windows component.
Full procedure with screenshots: Uninstall a program or app in Windows On uGetFix
Step 2: Scan the PC, then run the offline scan
Open Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options, run a Full scan and remove everything it finds. Then select Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan) and click Scan now: the PC restarts and scans before Windows loads, which finds files that hide while Windows runs.
Save your work first, because the offline scan takes about 15 minutes. Both scans are built into Windows 11 and Windows 10, and a second scanner from another vendor is a useful extra opinion.
Windows 11: Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options. Full procedure with screenshots: Run a Microsoft Defender Offline scan
After removal: keep the ads from coming back
If the wheel appears on your iPhone
An iPhone cannot run a Windows .exe, and the wheel is only a web page, so there is no virus to remove. What you can do is leave the page, clear what Safari saved and make sure its warnings are on.
- 1
Leave the page without touching it
Tap the top of the screen to show the address field, then enter a new address or search, as Apple advises for pop-ups (Apple Support). Do not tap OK, Spin or Allow.
- 2
Clear Safari's history and website data
Open Settings > Apps > Safari, scroll down, tap Clear History and Website Data and confirm (Apple Support). On iOS versions before the Apps entry, Safari is a top-level entry in Settings. The wheel is often one tab in a restored session; closing the tabs matters as well.
- 3
Switch on the pop-up and fraud warnings
In the same Safari settings, turn on Block Pop-ups and Fraudulent Website Warning.
- 4
If you use Chrome on the iPhone
The reader who reported the wheel in the Chrome app got it in the browser, not as an app. Close the tab and clear the browser's data from its own settings. We did not verify Chrome for iPhone's current menu names here.
The 2019 guide also told readers to choose "Erase All Contents" if the redirects continued. That wipes the whole phone and is not needed for a web page. Use it only if an app or profile you do not recognise is on the phone, and only after a backup.
If you ran a file, shared your number or the pop-ups keep coming
If you only looked at the page, close it and stop. These steps are for a file you ran or for pop-ups that carry on after the browser is restarted.
- 1
Remove unknown programs
In Windows 11 open Settings > Apps > Installed apps (Apps & features in Windows 10), sort by install date and uninstall what appeared on the day you clicked, including anything called a Flash player or updater (Uninstall a program or app in Windows On uGetFix).
- 2
Update, then scan with Windows
In Windows Security > Virus & threat protection check Protection updates first, since a scanner finds only what it knows. Then run a Full scan and the Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan) (Run a Microsoft Defender Offline scan). If you use another security product, update it first and run its full scan.
- 3
Check the browser
Remove extensions you did not add and reset the browser, as in the tabs for your browser above. Then restart it and look at the start page and the tabs it opens.
- 4
Handle the number and the shares
If you gave a phone number, do not answer unknown callers and do not reply to texts about the prize. Tell the contacts you forwarded the link to that it is a scam.
Typed a password or card number on a page that came from the wheel? Change that password today and tell your bank about the card.
How to avoid the wheel and pages like it
Do
- Close a prize page without touching it, and ask a friend before you open a link that has no message with it.
- Choose Custom or Advanced when an installer offers it, and clear every pre-ticked extra before you click Next; skip "Quick", "Basic" and "Recommended" setups.
- Download programs from the maker's site or the Microsoft Store; give the antivirus time to check a download before you open it.
- Switch on Safari's Block Pop-ups and Fraudulent Website Warning, or Chrome's Enhanced protection.
- Keep a recent backup of your files; File History or OneDrive on Windows.
Don't
- Forward a link to win a prize, whatever the countdown says.
- Give a phone number, address or card number to "claim" a gift.
- Install a Flash player or updater. Flash was retired in 2020.
- Open a file or app that a prize page calls a download, update or game.
Questions about Spin The Lucky Wheel
Is Spin The Lucky Wheel a virus?
No, Spin The Lucky Wheel is not a virus; it is a scam web page that looks like a Facebook post with a prize wheel. Opening it installs nothing on its own. The danger is what it asks you to do:
- share the link with 10 friends on WhatsApp
- give your phone number
- then download a file
Malwarebytes saw that file, Flashplayerupdate-setup.exe, in 2015 and detected it as PUP.Optional.DownloadAdmin, an unwanted program. If you only looked at the page and closed it, nothing needs removing. If you ran the file, follow the Windows steps above.
Is the Spin The Lucky Wheel prize real?
No, the prize is never sent. The page always lets you "win" an extra spin, then shows only a "possible prize", as Malwarebytes recorded in 2015 when the offer was a Samsung S6. A 2016 copy in the name of Amazon offered a Lenovo phone and ended after a game install with no prize.
A reader who shared the link as asked wrote that the phone he "won" never came. The wheel is a page script, and the comments below it only claim that others won. The people who run it earn from the shares, clicks and downloads you produce.
How do I get rid of Spin The Lucky Wheel pop-ups?
Close the tab, then work out where the page comes from. If it opens after a link from a friend, there is nothing to remove. If it opens after clicks on another site, the ads of that site sent you.
If it opens on many unrelated sites or in new tabs, check the extension list in each browser, uninstall programs added on the day it started and reset the browser, using the tabs on this page. On an iPhone, clear Safari's history and website data from Settings, Apps, Safari. A scan is only needed if you ran a downloaded file.
How do I remove Spin The Lucky Wheel from my iPhone?
Close the page, then open Settings, Apps, Safari and tap Clear History and Website Data. Apple gives this path for iPhone and says to tap Clear History to confirm. In the same Safari settings, turn on Block Pop-ups and Fraudulent Website Warning.
There is no program to delete: the wheel is a web page, and the Windows file it offered cannot run on an iPhone. The 2019 advice to erase all contents is not needed for a web page. Use it only if an app or profile you do not know is on the phone, and back up first.
I downloaded Flashplayerupdate-setup.exe. What now?
Do not run it, and if you already did, treat the PC as having unwanted software. Malwarebytes reported this file from the wheel in 2015 and detected it as PUP.Optional.DownloadAdmin. Flash itself ended on 31 December 2020, and Adobe blocked Flash content from 12 January 2021, so no real Flash update exists now.
Delete the file, uninstall programs added on that day under Settings, Apps, Installed apps, run a Microsoft Defender full scan and the offline scan, and reset the browser if its settings changed. We did not test the file ourselves.
I shared the wheel with friends and gave my phone number. What should I do?
Tell your contacts that the link is a scam so they do not follow it, and do not forward it again. The share step posts the link under your name, which is how the 2015 and 2016 versions spread.
For the phone number, do not answer unknown callers, do not reply to texts about a prize and do not give out verification codes. The sources do not say what the operators do with the number, so we cannot say more. If you typed a password or card number anywhere on the way, change that password and call your bank.
Why does Spin The Lucky Wheel keep coming back?
It comes back for one of three reasons. A browser can restore the tabs from last time, so the wheel returns when you start it; close all its tabs before you quit. A site you visit can send you through the same ad chain again.
Or an unwanted extension or a program that came with free software is opening it, which is what our 2019 guide assumed. Check the browser's start-up setting, then the extension list, then Installed apps sorted by install date. If it still returns, reset the browser using the steps on this page.
Do I need antivirus software to remove Spin The Lucky Wheel?
Not for the page. A wheel page is not on your PC, so there is nothing for a scanner to remove; closing it and clearing the browser's data is enough. A scan is worth running if you ran Flashplayerupdate-setup.exe or another file the page offered, if the browser's start page or search changed, or if pop-ups continue on many sites.
Windows 11 and 10 include Microsoft Defender, which can run a full scan and an offline scan. We do not claim that any product removes this scam: it is a web page and a chain of links.
How do I avoid prize wheels like this one?
Treat every message that says you were chosen as an advert. Close the tab without touching it and never forward a link to win something; the countdown timer is a pressure tactic, and Malwarebytes found the page carried on after it expired.
Do not give a phone number or card number to claim a gift, and do not install a game, player or Flash update because a page asks. Install programs from the maker's site, choose Custom setup and untick extras. Keep Safari's Block Pop-ups on, or Chrome's Enhanced protection, and ask a friend before you open an unexplained link.
Will Fortect remove Spin The Lucky Wheel ads?
Fortect scans Windows for malware and unwanted programs and repairs the system files and settings they change, and its free scan shows what it finds on your PC before you decide anything.
For Spin The Lucky Wheel ads, follow the plan above as well: the browser steps take back permissions and settings that no scanner treats as a threat, and uninstalling the program that brought it removes the source.
Run Microsoft Defender's full scan and, if anything was found, its offline scan as a second opinion. If the symptoms are gone after the plan and both scans are clean, there is nothing more to do.
Sources
- Malwarebytes Labs: Don't take this Lucky Wheel for a Spin... (15 July 2015) (read October 6, 2026)
- Deccan Chronicle: Amazon BigBillionDay Lucky Wheel hoax spreads on WhatsApp (19 September 2016) (read October 6, 2026)
- Apple Support: Delete your Safari history, cache, and cookies on iPhone (read October 6, 2026)
- Apple Support: Block pop-up ads and windows in Safari (read October 6, 2026)
- Adobe: Flash Player End of Life general information (read October 6, 2026)
- Microsoft: Stay protected with the Windows Security app (read October 6, 2026)
- Microsoft: Internet Explorer 11 desktop app retirement FAQ (read October 6, 2026)