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

Microsoft backs down on counting photos in albums twice against a user's storage

Microsoft made a rather strange announcement back in September 2023 regarding storage on its OneDrive cloud service. The company said back then that photos that users put into albums would count twice […]

firefox

Firefox is getting a button to Reset Private Browsing Sessions

If you are using Firefox Nightly, you may have noticed a new flame icon in the browser's toolbar when its private browsing mode is open. This new button enables Firefox users to […]

Google Pixel 8 series

Google guarantees 7 years of full updates for its Pixel 8 devices

Google unveiled the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro during its Made by Google event this week. Leaks revealed much about the two devices that Google announced during the event. The main […]

A consumer subscription version of Windows may be just around the corner

Rumors about a consumer subscription version of Windows have been floating around for several years. It is the next logical step for Microsoft in its quest to make continuous revenue from its […]

Act Now! Android October 2023 Update patches 2 actively exploited issues

Google has published the October 2023 security updates for Android. The update addresses a total of 54 different security issues. Two of the issues are exploited in the wild, according to Google's […]

Firefox 118 boosts security with Encrypted Client Hello support

Mozilla released Firefox 118 Stable in late September 2023 to the public. It was a major release, as it introduced the long awaited native translate feature in the browser. Privacy friendly translations […]

windows copilot ads

Windows Copilot's is showing third-party Ads to Windows users

Microsoft is about to launch Windows Copilot as part of the October 2023 cumulative update for Windows 11 version 22H2. It is already included in the preview update released at the end […]

Windows 11's Notepad is getting an auto save feature

Microsoft tricks users, blocks removal of the Windows Backup app

Windows Backup is a new application for Windows 10 and 11 devices to back up data on Windows PCs. The backup app was introduced recently on Windows 10 and 11 devices. On […]

VeraCrypt 1.26.7 update brings major changes: read this before updating

It took the developers of the open source encryption software VeraCrypt more than 18 months to release VeraCrypt 1.26.7. It is a big release that addresses several issues and makes other important […]

0patch security updates windows server 2012

Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 reach end of support, sort of

On October 10, 2023, Windows Server 2012 and Windows Server 2012 R2 will reach end of support officially. Microsoft notes on a support page that the products "will no longer receive security […]

Client-side encryption in Gmail on mobile is now available, but most users can't use it

Google launched a security improvement for the Gmail mobile applications for Android and iOS this week that adds client-side encryption support. Client-side encryption gives users control over encryption keys and data; even […]

Firefox Beta for Android lifts restrictions for Extensions

When Mozilla launched the redesigned version of Firefox for Android in 2019 as a preview, it changed several key features of the browser. The classic Firefox for Android browser was not restricted […]

Bing Chat Enterprise

AI responses may link to malware

AI tools are probably the biggest hype in tech in 2023. Companies have pushed out products or are about to. Bing Chat is one of the most prominent tools available, but there […]

Firefox 118.0.1 and ESR 115.3.1 fix a critical security issue

Mozilla has just released a security update for its Firefox web browser that patches a critical security issue in all supported versions of the web browser. The update is available for Firefox […]

Another Chrome security issue is exploited in the wild (and affecting all Chromium-based browsers)

Google released a security update for a security vulnerability in Google Chrome that is exploited in the wild. It is the fifth 0-day vulnerability in Google Chrome in 2023. Other Chromium-based browsers […]

You can now ask Paint on Windows 11 to create images for you

Microsoft is rolling out a new version of its Paint application for Windows that includes Paint Cocreator, an AI component that helps users of Paint create artwork. Paint Cocreator is based on […]

Disney's password sharing crackdown begins

Streaming companies like Netflix or Disney are not happy about customers who share account access with non-household members. Some share to reduce the monthly subscription cost, others allow their collage-bound children to […]

reddit api controversy

Reddit enforces user activity tracking on site to push advertising revenue

Reddit announced privacy related changes today that make things worse for many privacy conscious users. The announcement by Reddit's head of privacy lists a number of changes regarding privacy, advertisement on Reddit […]

using Copilot in Windows 11

Windows Copilot is now available, but millions of users can't use it yet

Microsoft announced the fourth Moment update for Windows 11 officially on September 26, 2023. The update comes as part of the monthly preview update for the Windows 11 operating system and will […]

Google is retiring its Podcasts app to focus on YouTube Music

Google revealed today that it is retiring the official Google Podcasts application to create a centralized podcasts experience on YouTube Music. Launched in 2018, Google Podcasts did not receive rave reviews when […]

firefox

Firefox 118 release brings new web translation feature and end of Firefox ESR 102

Firefox 118’s and Firefox ESR 115.3’s official release date is September 26, 2023. The new Firefox releases mark the end of Firefox ESR 102, which is no longer supported. Firefox installations that […]

Google is putting an end to its YouTube Premium Lite plans

YouTube users have three official options when it comes to dealing with advertisement on the platform: endure it, subscribe to YouTube Premium, or, in some select countries, subscribe to YouTube Premium Lite. […]

Microsoft pushes Backup App to Windows 10 Enterprise devices and Admins are not happy

The September 2023 security updates for Windows 10 included the Windows Backup app. Read on to find out why Enterprise admins are furious. Microsoft's Windows 10 operating system is still the most […]

Nintendo adds Passkey passwordless authentication support to accounts

Nintendo users who have created an account at Nintendo may now switch to passwordless authentication thanks to passkey integration. Nintendo Switch users do not need an online account to use their device […]

Google is killing Gmail's Basic HTML View in early 2024

Gmail users who use the service's legacy HTML Basic View mode won't be able to do so anymore starting January 2024. The classic version of Gmail's web interface offers a simpler experience, […]

Microsoft 365 Basic: access to OneDrive advanced security features coming

Microsoft 365 Basic customers will soon gain access to advanced security features and non-security features. The newest Microsoft 365 Plan, established in early 2023, replaced the OneDrive Standalone plan in Microsoft's portfolio. […]

Mozilla is renaming Firefox accounts to Mozilla accounts

Mozilla announced today that it is renaming Firefox accounts to Mozilla accounts. One of the main purposes of a Firefox account is the synchronization of data between different Firefox installations on the […]

amazon vine

Amazon Prime: you'll soon have to pay more if you don't want ads in Prime Video

It was only a matter of time before the next major streaming service starts to introduce advertising. This time, it is Amazon Prime, or more precisely Amazon Prime Video, which is getting […]

windows copilot

Windows 11's Moment 4 update launches on September 26, 2023

Microsoft plans to launch the fourth Moment update for Windows 11 next week as part of the month's optional updates for the operating system. The Moments update includes a preview version of […]

Notification of security issue

Earlier today, we noticed a security issue on the site that showed a malicious intermediary page to visitors. This page asked visitors to update their browser to continue viewing the content. There […]

LastPass to enforce minimum Master Password length of 12 characters

LastPass announced today (via email) that the requirements for the master password have been changed. The master password is the primary password used to gain access to accounts. In an email, LastPass […]

How to turn off advertising popups in Windows 11

Microsoft's Windows 11 operating system may show suggestions as popups regularly on the computer using the notification's system. Initially designed to give users tips and suggestions on improving workflows with Windows 11, […]

Bitwarden Free: WebAuthn new passwordless 2FA method

Free users of the open source password manager Bitwarden may use a new two-factor authentication (2FA) method in the latest version of the application. The developers of the password management service have […]

Waterfox G6.0 ships with DNS over Oblivious HTTP support and performance optimizations

A new version of Waterfox is now available. The Firefox-based web browser is already available for new and existing users. Waterfox G6.0 introduces a number of new and interesting features. Besides DNS […]

Taking another look at System Ninja, a CCleaner alternative

Our first review of System Ninja dates back to the year 2010, six years after the initial release of, arguable the most popular temporary file cleaner, CCleaner. Some veteran Windows users may […]

Mullvad VPN completes migration to disk-less VPN infrastructure

VPN provider Mullvad announced today that it has completed the migration to a disk-less VPN infrastructure.  The migration to servers that operate fully in RAM strengthens user privacy further and it also […]

Firefox 119 will launch with an important address bar change

Mozilla plans to change the information that its open source Firefox web browser displays in the address bar. Once the change lands, Firefox won't display https:// in the browser's address bar anymore, […]

paint layers

Windows' Paint App is getting layer and transparency support

Microsoft introduced support for removing backgrounds from images loaded in the default Windows image editor Paint. Today, the company has pushed out another feature to testers; this time, it is layer and […]

Thunderbird developers plan to revive Firefox Send

Sending large files via email is still a major problem on today's Internet. Most email providers cap the size of emails. Attempts to send emails that are too large are met with […]

Meta Voicebox

Ask Meta to delete or block your personal data from third-party sources for AI training

All major and many smaller companies are betting big on AI. This generative AI needs large data sets, which gives companies with large user bases an Edge over those that don't. Many […]