How to Fix “Screen Overlay Detected” Error on Android

Android Marshmallow brings the granular permissions control to our smartphones where we can control every individual permission that an app needs. Most of you who are using Marshmallow might have seen the infamous “Screen Overlay Detected” on Android. This error won’t allow certain apps to launch and you can’t grant permissions as well. The worst part is that it’s quite hard to detect which app’s causing the issue. Some of the popular apps that cause this error are Facebook, CleanMaster, Lux, and other apps.

Luckily, it’s quite easy to fix the issue once you have detected the problematic app. This issue is due to a new feature from Android Marshmallow that allows apps to draw over other apps. For instance, Facebook Messenger, Hike, and other messenger apps can run in the foreground. In simple terms, these apps can overlay on other apps to enable features like chat windows. So, you can’t grant permissions to a newly installed app while using chat heads on Facebook. Let’s see how to fix “Screen Overlay Detected” error on your Android device.

How to Fix “Screen Overlay Detected” Error on Android

1. First, let’s find which application have permission to draw over your device’s screen. To do this:
   • For Samsung Devices: Navigate to Settings » Application » Application Manager » More » Apps that can appear on top.
   • For other Android Devices: Navigate to Settings » Apps » Click on the gear icon at top-right corner » Draw over other apps.
     
2. Here you will find the list of apps that have permission to draw over other apps on your device. So, identify the app that might be causing the issue.
3. You can go for a trial and error method and disable which app is causing the issue. Otherwise, you can just try disabling the more common culprits like CleanMaster, Twilight, Lux etc.. Any app that controls brightness can be problematic.
4. Disable the “Draw over other apps” feature on the problematic apps. Get back to the app you were granting permissions and check again.
   
5. This should fix the error.

You can re-enable the screen overlay for the apps you’ve disabled it in step 3. Make sure the screen overlay is allowed for the apps that are really necessary. This would prevent the “Screen Overlay Detected” error on your Android device.