Mike’s Tech Repair

09/06/2024

One man’s trash is another man’s breach.

Thinking about disposing of or recycling your old computer or electronics?

Identity theft can happen through dumpster diving when criminals search through trash for sensitive documents and personal information

Some Target locations:
They may search dumpsters outside homes, office buildings, and public trash bins. They may also target recycling centers where sensitive documents and electronics are sometimes disposed of incorrectly.

Once thieves have your information, they can use it for identity theft and financial loss. They can open new credit accounts in your name, withdraw money from your bank, or use your identity for illegal activities.

This can also happen if you decide to dispose of a smart TV without logging out of your Amazon, Netflix, Hulu, etc. accounts.

For a small fee, I can provide these services, and you can watch the process in my workshop for ease of mind. I can also stop by your house or place of business and pick it up for you. After providing the service, I can take care of the final disposal of the hardware for no extra charge.

Call me at (715) 208-2595 and I can arrange a time to perform the work for you.

08/22/2024

If you're looking to dispose of your old computer, I can wipe the data off of it before bringing it to the collection event.

08/14/2024

Ready for school?

Computers are an integral part of today’s learning environment such as virtual learning, video conferencing, and media that loads on your browser compared to just a few years ago. Your computer regularly needs hardware upgrades, maintenance and cleanings to keep it in good working condition. It will help to prevent your computer from slowing down, and will likely speed it up.

I’m happy to help get your computer in prime working order in time for the new school year. Give me a call at (715) 208-2595.

05/29/2024

Open for business!
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Closed: Noon - 1:00pm daily for lunch

*Please call or text before stopping by as I might be helping someone off site - 715-208-2595

03/15/2024

It's been a pretty warm season so far. If you're looking to do an early spring cleaning and need some extra space in your garage, you can bring your electronics to my shop or DM me for pick up, so I can recycle them for you, free of charge. I'll take old TVs, computers, printers, laptops, and things of that nature.
6021W Riverside Dr in Hurley.
Looking forward to seeing you!

02/27/2024

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will order Avast to pay $16.5 million and ban the company from selling the users' web browsing data or licensing it for advertising purposes.

"While the FTC's privacy lawsuits routinely take on firms that misrepresent their data practices, Avast's decision to expressly market its products as safeguarding people's browsing records and protecting data from tracking only to then sell those records is especially galling," said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan.

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ftc-to-ban-avast-from-selling-browsing-data-for-advertising-purposes/

Avast is quite an intrusive piece of software that I've always recommended against installing. It causes performance issues and now they're getting busted for selling your browsing data to advertisers. It can be quite a convoluted process to uninstall it in many cases, so if you need help, feel free to call me at (715) 208-2595 and I can walk you through the process and also perform virus and spyware removal from your computer or device.

02/12/2024

Services and rates. Rack cards will be in by the 21st and distributed at the Hurley and Ironwood chambers of commerce.

02/07/2024

Patch Tuesday
Microsoft schedules the release of Windows updates on "Patch Tuesday," the second Tuesday of each month at 10:00 AM PST.

In a new preview update, Microsoft is pushing Windows 10 users to Windows 11 with big, in-your-face invites. That means February’s update (2/13/24) is going to be extra annoying. Bummer. Make sure to back up your data and create a system restore point before then, just in case something goes wrong with the update.

To create a system restore point, type: sysdm.cpl in the search field on the bottom left next to your start menu where it says "Type here to search", then press enter. If you don't have a search box, you can right click in a blank area on the taskbar and hover over the search menu and put a check next to "show search box". Afterwards, on the top you'll see a tab that says, "system protection". Click that, and then click the button near the bottom that says "Create". You can name it whatever you like but I personally prefer to name mine using a date format of some sort, like "mike020724".

02/06/2024

Coming soon - the new repair shop.
Building delivered today.✅
Electrical and signage will be next!

I'm still open for business as usual while the project is on-going.

02/05/2024

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/us-government-disrupts-botnet-peoples-republic-china-used-conceal-hacking-critical

The vast majority of routers that comprised the KV Botnet were Cisco and NetGear routers that were vulnerable because they had reached “end of life” status; that is, they were no longer supported through their manufacturer’s security patches or other software updates.

If you have an older router, it would be a good time to upgrade it. I recommend replacing your router at least every five years. My brand of choice is TP-Link for home use.

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