Martin Brinkmann

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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

Unified Microsoft Teams app

Teams: Microsoft launches unified app for everyone to end two-version-chaos

Today, Microsoft has put an end to the Microsoft Teams chaos that has plagued Windows users for years. The company announced today that there will only be one Microsoft Teams app for […]

How to send files between Windows and Android using Link to Windows

Remember the time when you had to connect your smartphones via a cable to your PCs to transfer files? This process was disliked by many users for a number for a number […]

Microsoft blocks one way of installing Windows 11 on unsupported hardware

Over the weekend, there has been quite a bit of panic about Microsoft blocking one of the ways to install Windows 11 on unsupported hardware. Some news sites claimed that this was […]

Latest Windows 11 update is reportedly causing freezes and lags for some users

If you have installed the latest batch of Windows 11 Updates and could boot fine into the system after installation, congratulations. Reports suggest that the update is causing issues on some systems. […]

Google is killing uBlock Origin in Chrome, but this trick lets you keep it for another year

Google is switching the ruleset for extensions in Chrome soon. The updated version is controversial, as it will end several popular extensions for Chrome, including the world's most popular ad-blocker uBlock Origin. […]

Proton updates its logos

Proton VPN: free VPN users can use the browser extensions now

Proton announced today that it has made the decision to allow free users of its service to use the Chrome and Firefox extensions. Up until now, access was limited to paying customers. […]

The Windows Security Updates of August 2024 are now available - BitLocker Recovery issue fixed

Microsoft has released security updates for all supported client and server versions of Windows. Other company products, including Microsoft Office, have received security updates as well. Our monthly overview is designed to […]

Tools

Windows Utility WinUtil is a one-stop shop to customize Windows

Windows Utility, short WinUtil, is a popular open source customization tool for Microsoft Windows devices. It is free and can be run from an elevated PowerShell prompt. It is difficult to describe […]

Firefox Nightly: Mozilla makes it easier to test vertical tabs

The latest Firefox Nightly release makes it easier to test vertical tabs and the browser's new sidebar. Mozilla launched support for the, much requested, vertical tabs feature in Firefox in June. Back […]

Windows 11 bug

Security researcher discovered attack to downgrade Windows permanently

One of the most important advices when it comes to the security of electronic devices is to make sure that they are up to date. A security researcher discovered a new attack […]

Google

The end of Patreon? Google is implementing micro-payments into Chrome

Google is working on integrating what it calls Web Monetization functionality in its Chrome web browser. One of the main intents is to add a way to reward good content on the […]

Firefox 129.0: Reader View enhancements, HTTPS and DNS improvements, and security fixes

Mozilla has released Firefox 129.0 Stable as well as Firefox 128.1 ESR and Firefox 115.14 ESR. Firefox 129 makes several important changes to the browser. Notable are the switch to HTTPS first […]

PC Audio Speakers

How to fix low audio volume on Windows 11 devices

If you experience low audio volume playback on Windows 11, then you may be affected by the same issue that I ran into over this weekend. When I turned on my HP […]

Google Search

Here is another reason why you should never click on ads to download software

Imagine the following scenario. You want to download Google Authenticator, run a search on Google for the company's application, and click on the first link that appears. The link looks good even […]

Firefox update makes watching videos a more enjoyable experience

Mozilla is working on a new feature for its Firefox web browser: automatic picture-in-picture mode. It is currently available in Firefox Nightly 130 and could launch in Firefox Stable later this year. […]

Microsoft 365 includes a VPN now, but there is a catch

Microsoft has added a VPN service to Microsoft Personal and Family subscriptions. It is available as part of the subscription plan, which means that there are not any additional costs. Here are […]

Thunderbird 128 Upgrades are now enabled

Users of the Thunderbird email client who still use Thunderbird 115.x will be upgraded to the new version automatically starting today. The team released the new major version of the Thunderbird email […]

About Chrome's "These extensions may soon no longer be supported" message

When you update Google Chrome to the latest version, you may notice a new section when you manage installed extensions in the browser. Google now displays extensions that may soon no longer […]

Linux Mint 22

Linux Mint 22 is an attractive option for migrating away from Windows

The Linux Mint team has just released Linux Mint 22, a new major version of the free Linux distribution. With Windows 10's end of support coming up quickly next year, at least […]

Windows: latest security update is causing huge issues for some users

If you have installed the July 2024 security updates for Windows and managed to boot into the desktop after the required restart, congratulations. Microsoft has just confirmed a new known issue that […]

Google TV Remote

Google stops the sale of TV Shows from Google TV - What you need to know

Google announced today that it is making a far-reaching change to its Google TV service. Starting today, Google customers may no longer purchase TV episodes or seasons from Google TV on "Google […]

Cookies

Google gives up: third-party cookies won't go away after all in Chrome

Google announced "a new path" for its Privacy Sandbox initiative for the Web. The company's plan was to eliminate third-party cookies on the Internet and replace them with new technology that it […]

BlueScreen

CrowdStrike in a nutshell: how a faulty software update took down millions of Windows PCs

A software update by cybersecurity company CrowdStrike was responsible for taking down millions of Windows PCs, some of them in critical industries. Last Friday, reports started to come in from companies and […]

Google confirms that cache links have been removed from search results

Google is killing all links of its URL Shortener goo.gl

Millions of links will stop working next year as a consequence of Google shutting down its URL Shortener service goo.gl. Google announced the change on its Developer blog this week. According to […]

Windows 11 23H2

You should now be able to get Windows 11 Version 23H2, if you have not already

Microsoft released Windows 11 version 23H2 last year to the public. It,, and the Moments Update that followed, introduced Windows Copilot and thus the first tiny bits of AI in Windows. The […]

Chrome Download Warning reason

Google Chrome will soon throw security warnings at you that you cannot ignore

Google is changing how Chrome reports potentially malicious file downloads to the user. While the blocking algorithm is not changing, Chrome will display full screen security warnings to the user. Google Chrome […]

Windows Updates will be smaller after the release of Windows 11 version 24H2

Microsoft announced a fundamental change to Windows Updates. The built-in service delivers updates to millions of Windows devices throughout the world. Starting with the release of this year's feature update, most Windows […]

Windows 11

How to change your Windows account password

Most Windows accounts are protected by an account password. This password is needed to sign in to user account. Our step-by-step guide walks you through the process of changing the account password […]

Thunderbird 128 Nebula: almost there, four channels and ESR

The Thunderbird team continues its work on the next big version of the open source email client. Thunderbird 128 Nebula is almost ready and the makers have published a support page that […]

Windows 11

Microsoft is not done yet: more ads spotted in latest Windows 11 build

When is an ad an advertisement and not a recommendation? Microsoft clearly likes to use the term recommendation for what others may see as an advertisement. There are recommendations in the Start […]

The Windows Security Updates of July 2024 are now available

Microsoft has released security updates for its Windows operating system and other company products. The security updates are available already and should be installed automatically on most home Windows PCs. Our monthly […]

firefox

Firefox 128: big feature release and new ESR-base

Mozilla plans to release Firefox 128 and Firefox 128 ESR today. The new browser version introduces plenty of new features and improvements, including new translate functionality, a unified user data clearing dialog, […]

Notepad

First look at Notepad's Spell Checker: surprise, it is not as bad as it sounds

While Microsoft continues to kill some apps, including WordPad and Cortana, it is giving other classic apps some love. Notepad is one of these. After enabling tab-support and auto-saving, the Redmond-based company […]

Firefox Take Screenshot YouTube

How to capture a screenshot from a YouTube Video

Have you ever tried to take a screenshot from a YouTube video? You may have run into a few roadblocks, including YouTube controls visible in the screenshot or a rather bad resolution […]

Hacker

Hackers steal millions of Authy 2FA phone numbers

Malicious actors have managed to steal more than 33 million phone numbers used by users of the two-factor authentication service Authy. Authy is a popular security application to manage authentication codes for […]

Windows 11

Popular Windows XP privacy tool is making a comeback

If you have lived through the Windows XP era of computing, you may have used a program called XP-AntiSpy back then. Yes, even then it was useful to run a privacy tool […]

Copilot+ PC

Microsoft is evolving Copilot in Windows 11 by downgrading it

Microsoft has just evaporated the small hope that some users may have had that Copilot could become a useful tool to manage the Windows 11 operating system. When Microsoft first began to […]

Windows

Windows 11 Government Edition is what everyone wants, but there is a catch

A new edition of Windows 11 has been making the rounds over the weekend. Called Windows 11 Government Edition, screenshots of it were posted on Twitter by Andy Kirby (via Günter Born). […]

A new journey with Windows

Windows 10 Support until 2030? 0Patch makes it possible

Micro-patching service 0Patch will support Microsoft's Windows 10 operating system until 2030. Microsoft plans to end support for Windows 10 officially in October 2025. For the first time in a very long […]

AMD

AMD plans to make huge game downloads smaller in the future

Computer games seem to grow bigger with each passing year. Gone are the days that an entire game fit easily on a tiny floppy disk. If you never encountered a floppy disk, […]