Martin Brinkmann

martin photo

Martin Brinkmann is a journalist from Germany who founded Ghacks Technology News back in 2005. Martin started his career as a tech support representative at a large German financial corporation which he used to finance his college education in English, Information Technology and History.


He quit college and his job when Ghacks began to attract a large enough readership. He made the decision to become a full time blogger and webmaster, and has not looked back since.


Martin is interested in all things tech. His primary focus is on desktop operating systems, web browsers, Internet services, and privacy related topics.


He published the book The Complete Windows 10 Privacy Guide: Windows 10 Fall Creators Update version in 2017. Martin writes a weekly column for fellow tech site Betanews as well.


You can reach Martin on Facebook or on Twitter. Please use the contact form at the bottom of the page to contact the author directly.


Martin has been quoted or mentioned in many major online and print publications, including Forbes, Lifehacker.com, ComputerWorld, LinkedIn, Reddit, Betanews.com, Bleeping Computer, TechCrunch, PC World, Tom's Hardware, Slashdot, Hacker News, The Register, and more.


Martin's articles on Ghacks

HP is preventing printer users from using third-party ink

HP in hot water again over restricting functionality on its all-in-one-printers

HP is facing a class-action lawsuit in the United States that centers around the accusation that HP is intentionally bricking functionality on all-in-one printer models when ink is running low. All-in-one printers […]

New Android features

Android: how to disable 2G cellular connections to improve security

Google Android users may (soon) disable 2G cellular connections on their devices thanks to a recently integrated feature. The option is designed to harden network security on Android by disabling 2G functionality […]

Soon, Windows 11 users may uninstall more Microsoft Stock Apps

One of the main points of criticism leveled against Microsoft and its Windows 11 operating system is that many of the stock apps can't be uninstalled easily. Users who attempt to uninstall […]

proton sentinel

Proton Sentinel: next level account security protection for (almost) everyone

Proton, maker of Proton Mail, VPN and several other services, announced the launch of Proton Sentinel earlier today. Proton Sentinel is a security add-on for Proton accounts that enables higher levels of […]

Brave Browser 1.57 released with Forget by Default mode and security fixes

Brave Software has released Brave Browser 1.57. The new version of the web browser is a smaller update, but it includes several new features and also security fixes. Brave installations should receive […]

Google Chrome 116: more Telemetry and 26 security patches

Google has released a new stable version of its Chrome web browser for desktop operating systems, Android and iOS. Chrome 116 is a security update first and foremost, as it addresses a […]

google photos memories

Your memories have a permanent place now in Google Photos

If you are using Google Photos, the default photos application on most Android phones, you may get the occasional trip down memory lane when the app reminds you about an event that […]

vivaldi 6.1

Vivaldi 6.1 point update fixes a critical security issue in the browser

Vivaldi Technologies has released a point update for Vivaldi 6.1 that addresses a critical security issue and a crash in stable versions of the web browser. The update is already available and […]

The latest reports show that Google has come a long way and offers new privacy settings in Chrome Canary and Chrome Dev apps.

This extension reveals network activity of other Chrome extensions

Little Rat is a new extension for Google Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers that monitors and reveals that network traffic of any installed browser extension. Extensions for web browsers come in all […]

lastpass

LastPass improves passwordless logins with FIDO2 authenticator support for desktops

Lastpass, maker of the password management service of the same name, announced today that customers may now use FIDO2 compatible authenticators on desktop devices for passwordless logins to their vaults. The new […]

Microsoft's new Windows Backup app is coming to Windows 10 as well

Microsoft released the new Windows Backup app to Insider builds of Windows 11 in May 2023. The very same application will soon also be available on Windows 10 devices. The latest Windows […]

Google Translate is coming to Gmail on mobile devices

Google is rolling out translation support in the mobile Gmail applications for Android and iOS. The integration of Google Translate in the official Gmail application adds the much-requested feature, which has been […]

YouTube tightens thumbscrew to crack down on ad-blockers

Google has been testing several ways to combat users who use ad-blockers on its YouTube video streaming site. One of the first tests informed users that ad blockers are not allowed on […]

Bing Chat Enterprise

Microsoft limits use of AI Services in upcoming Services Agreement update

Microsoft plans to update its Services Agreement on September 30, 2023. The company is informing customers about the change currently via email and other means. If you take the time to go […]

Next Month, Windows 10's Start Menu will highlight the advantages of Microsoft Accounts to users

In early 2023, Microsoft started to test Start Menu promotions in its Windows 11 operating system. These have since then landed in release versions of Windows 11 and will launch on Windows […]

Google claims it has improved Chrome scrolling by the factor 2 on Android

Chrome users who run the web browser on Android and iOS devices may have noticed that the scrolling of Chrome on Android feels jankier than that on iOS devices. Soon, Chrome users […]

How to manually scan for unknown tracker devices in Android

When Apple launched AirTags, small devices that Apple users can use for tracking purposes, some heralded the company for launching another useful feature. Others, including many privacy advocates, noted that these devices […]

Firefox for Android will soon support all extensions

After years of waiting, Firefox for Android users may soon install any browser extension in the mobile browser. When Mozilla launched a redesigned Firefox web browser for Android, it limited extensions to […]

chinese hackers breach us government

Microsoft Authenticator will soon provide codes via WhatsApp

Microsoft is working on two improvements for its Microsoft Authenticator application. The first tests the delivery of authentication codes via Meta's WhatsApp application instead of SMS, the second attempts to limit Authenticator […]

Disney raises price of Disney+ to $13.99 and will block account sharing

Disney is increasing the price of its Disney+ streaming service, as well as that of Hulu, in the coming months. The company plans to charge 13.99 USD for an ad-free Disney+ plan […]

0Patch promises to support Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 with 3 years of security updates

Microsoft is ending support for Windows Server 2012 and Windows Server 2012 R2 in October 2023. Just like the recently dropped operating systems Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 will […]

Intel rebranding

Intel's latest graphics driver includes Telemetry

Computer users who operate devices with Intel graphics processing units may soon have Telemetry collected by the driver, reported to Intel and potentially shared with Intel partners. To make matters even less […]

YouTube showing "Your watch history is off" instead of videos

YouTube users who sign-in to a Google or YouTube account while using the video streaming site may have their watch history recorded automatically. The feature is turned on by default and YouTube […]

Windows 11 23H2

The Windows August 2023 security updates fix critical vulnerabilities and Internet Explorer

It is the second Tuesday of the month, and that means it is Microsoft Patch Tuesday. The company has released security updates for all supported client and server operating systems as well […]

microsoft edge

Microsoft Edge for Business launches next week: here is what you need to know

Microsoft plans to launch Microsoft Edge for Business Stable next week. A new blog post on the company's Tech Community website confirms Microsoft intention to launch the new business-focused Edge web browser […]

Meta's WhatsApp is working on getting its hands on user email addresses

When users create a WhatsApp account, they can only do so by linking a phone number to the account. While that makes sense logistically to a degree, it has also been criticized […]

Firefox 116.0.2 is the second point update in a week

Mozilla plans to release Firefox 116.0.2 later today. The second Firefox 116 point update follows Firefox 116.0.1, which Mozilla released last Friday. The two updates were released less than a week after […]

Microsoft removes 44 Intel CPUs from Windows 11's Processor Compatibility list

Microsoft's Windows 11 operating system has different hardware requirements than Windows 10, Windows 8.1 and previous versions of Windows. A modern processor is one of the requirements; Microsoft published three lists of […]

Microsoft Edge darker dark mode

Edge may soon save screenshots of every page you visit

Microsoft is testing a new feature in its Edge web browser for the desktop currently that saves screenshots of visited webpages to the browser's history. The feature, which is available in select […]

AI knows what you type by simply listening

Researchers have trained an AI deep learning model to detect computer keyboard keystrokes with up to 95% accuracy. While there is room for improvement, the core mechanic has an AI listen to […]

Chrome opening searches in the sidebar? Here is what you can do about it

Google Chrome users may right-click on selected text in the web browser and select the "search" option that is displayed to run a search right from the context menu. Up until recently, […]

Google fixes 17 security issues in latest Chrome 115 update

Google has released a point update for Chrome 115; this update patches 17 different security issues in the desktop and Android versions of the web browser. Google Chrome installations will be updated […]

Microsoft deprecates the Windows Cortana app

If you are one of the few Windows users who is using the Cortana standalone application for Windows, you will soon no longer be able to do so. A recent update of […]

Brave Search finally gets native Image and Video search capabilities

If you tried Brave Search in the past, you may have noticed that it redirected requests to find images or videos to either Google Search or Bing. Today, Brave Software announced the […]

Chrome Mobile is getting lots of suggestive features

Google Chrome for mobile is getting a new set of suggestive features. Google Chrome product manager Nick Kim Sexton published an article on Google's official The Keyword blog in which he highlighted […]

Chrome displays Downloads at the top now: here is how to restore the old behavior

Last year, Google began work on changing the download experience for Chrome and Chromium users. The web browser displayed downloads at the bottom of the screen by default and Google decided to […]

Microsoft is disabling TLS 1.0 and TLS 1.1 soon in Windows

Microsoft plans to disable the Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol versions 1.0 and 1.1 in Windows. The company made the announcement on its Tech Community website on August 1, 2023. The two […]

PowerToys 0.72 reduces install size significantly

How would you describe a tools collection for Windows that uses more than 3 gigabytes of storage space on the computer's hard drive after installation? Regardless of how good it is, you […]

Thunderbird: Sync postponed and switch to monthly releases

Thunderbird Sync, the much-awaited synchronization feature of the Thunderbird email client, won't be introduced in Thunderbird 115. A new blog post on the official Thunderbird blog confirms that the feature has been […]

Windows 11 Development: overview of the July 2023 changes

Microsoft released several development builds of Windows 11 in July 2023. Highlights this month include a new restore option using Windows Update, integration of passwordless support, changes to File Explorer and the […]