Lake County Geeks

05/02/2025

“If you don’t back up your computer, you don’t own your files. You’re just leasing them from Fate.”

Anonymous Geek

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01/21/2025

Windows 10 users still have until October, but after that, there is no more updates or support. There's a good chance your older device might be upgradeable, as the latest polls show W11 isn't setting the world on fire.

As of Dec '24, here is how Windows operating systems are being used:

Win10 62.73%
Win11 34.1%
Win7 2.4%

We are currently offering a $175 W11 install special that INCLUDES Windows 11 ($139 retail cost).

Call with questions!

Call now to connect with business.

09/11/2024

Every once in a while, we get one of "those" emails. You know, the kind that are a bit different than the usual attempts to separate good people from their money, and therefore might actually fool good people out of their ca$h. This is one of those emails.

This is what we call the subscription billing error scam. The spammers send this to millions of people, knowing a certain percentage will believe it and send them the $$$.

THE "BILL" IS NOT CORRECT. NOTHING WAS TAKEN OR CHARGED TO YOU.
DO NOT CALL THEM OR SEND THEM ANYTHING!!!!!

If you get one of these kinds of emails, simply trash it. Don't worry, you'll be fine. Spammers steal BILLIONS of dollars from good people. Don't let them get yours.

If you get a bunch of these kinds of emails or popups on your device, it only means you need a good PC cleaning, nothing more.

Call us with any questions you might have. 847-502-1531. We're good at this kind of stuff :).

Data recovery, Advertising, Graphic Design, Virus Computer Repair & Website Building.

07/27/2023

***LATEST SCAM ALERT***

Well, here is the latest attempt to steal your $$$ from overseas. These "people" send this out to thousands. Apparently YOU were charged $400-ish for Geek Squad services.

NO, you weren't. Geek Squad is still a terrible company, but they AREN'T calling you. It is a small office halfway around the world, where dozens of people are dialing for dollars all day long, trying to steal $$$ from good people.. We had a client in Lake Villa almost fall for it, but then hung up and called us when they began to ask questions that made them wonder if it really was Geek Squad. Don't do it.

We called them for you!

In a nutshell, we spoke to a guy with a heavy accent named "Ken" (yes, the same one from the Barbie movie!), and he explained their mistake, and if we could download a simple program and then log into our Chase bank account, "Ken" would gladly reverse those charges.

Seriously.

We then proceeded to call "Ken" a few choice words, and might have mentioned how sad his mommy would be, if she knew how he was stealing $$$ from folks in America. Let's just say his attitude changed for the worse after that.

Here's the thing: NEVER call ANY phone given to you in an email or box that pops up on your screen. NEVER. Microsoft, Google, AT&T, or any other billion dollar company will NEVER reach out to you like this. If you aren't sure, just find their phone number yourself and call THAT number.

Every year HUGE amounts of cash are stolen by idiots like this. DON'T be a victim.

If you see ANYTHING out of the ordinary pop up on your PC or phone, it might be time for a basic cleaning.

Give us a call with any questions. 847-502-1531. At least we're not half a world away :)

Data recovery, Advertising, Graphic Design, Virus Computer Repair & Website Building.

07/07/2023

Hello! We've noticed a TON of folks stopping by here lately, so, PLEASE call to discuss your reason to contact us. We don't stop by here every day, so you can also message us here OR at 847-502-1531 to arrange a drop-off time.

06/23/2022

We've been getting an uptick in calls from people getting hacked. It all boils down to the complexity of your passwords. The harder it is to crack, the better.

Hackidiots use a program that can make 100's of attempts every few seconds to get into your various online accounts. It's called using "Brute Force". They literally go thru a huge list of popular passwords & combinations until they get in or move onto the next acocunt to try and hack. The longer your password is, the longer it takes them to find (crack) it.

Be sure to use ALL possible keys when creating your password: numbers, letters, and most importantly "special symbols" (@ #$%^&*, etc). You can also use the "space" bar in your password! Not many people know that.

It seems the "breaking point" is to make sure you have a minimum of 8 characters for your password. If you look at the chart, you see it takes them around 30 SECONDS to crack a 7 digit password that uses all the different keys and almost 40 MINUTES to crack one that has 8 digits. They usually only try for a few minutes before moving on to someone else. Adding a 9th digit will increase their crack times to 2 days! That's more than enough security to keep yourself safe online.

Call us with any questions you might have. 847-502-1531.

12/02/2021

We can't believe it's been so long since our last post, but it's been one heck of a year for all of us. The new Windows 11 is out, but we are telling all our clients to WAIT. While free always tastes better, when it comes ot Windows operating systems, "free" is just another word for "tester".

They do this with all their O/S's since Windows 95 (to show how old we are). They offer a new operating system free, then, wait while millions of guinea pigs use it and help them discover the bugs they missed in development.

Just wait until version 2 comes out in a few months, and it will be a MUCH stronger system to use.

Of course, BACK UP EVERYTHING IMPORTANT before trying Windows 11.

By the way, we have some nice, refurbished laptops available starting at $400 for Christmas!

05/05/2021

macOS Big Sur bug may have already been exploited by hackers?

While this is more proof that Mac's are no longer invincible from virus/malware/hack attacks. With all the work put into Big Sur, this is an embarrassment to Apple, to say the least.

The good news is that the macOS Big Sur 11.3.1 update, now available from Apple, will fix those bugs in question, but you should get this update immediately, as Apple itself acknowledges that the threat may have been actively exploited already.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201222

Call us with any questions regarding your Mac! 847-502-1531

09/18/2020

Just when you think the "bad guys" have tried it all...here's ANOTHER way to get you. We were going thru the emails and THIS showed up. It was a threat to shut down our website since they say we are using some of their "intellectual property". That usually means images. Of course they're even offering to show us the actual images IF we click on their provided link!

As you've guessed by now, that link is really a doorway to get their malware/viruses into our PC. We've had a few calls from other small businesses who received the same or similar emails.

Here's the thing, IF you have a website that might be using other folks intellectual property, it is a simple process to see if they are correct. Use Google Images. Just click and drag an image into the search field and you will see immediately where it is being used online. 999 times out of 1,000 you'll see that you are NOT using someone else's property. If you would've clicked on the provided link by "Mel", you would've downloaded some possibly nasty things on your PC. Ifit turns out you do have other people's images on your PC, just delete and replace. You will NOT be sued for MILLION$, you will asked to remove them and have plenty of time to do it before any kind of a summons gets to your door.

It all boils down to the old tried & true statement, "If you don't know who is sending you something, NEVER CLICK ON IT!"

The internet world can be a scary place, but remember we're around to help.😉

05/19/2020

We are essential & open! We can look at your PC remotely to help you with certain instances. If you have an internet connection, we can work with you without having to come to your business or residence.

Talk about being safe & socially distant :) !

04/16/2020

If you're not thinking about enough already with this health crisis, here's something ELSE to worry about. Since this situation has hit all of us, there has been a marked rise in destructive spam, and in the most recent cases, they are getting pretty good at it.

As the sheer number of legitimate emails has risen in the past month or so, now this latest batch of virus-giving emails are fooling a good number of people.

They are really getting good at it.

As the posted images shows, everything looks 100% real, UNTIL you take the time to hover the mouse cursor over the button "they" want to you click. Remember, do NOT click any button in your emails until you know 100% it is real.

As you can see by the magnified and circled in red http address, clicking that button will NOT take you to PayPal, it will take you...well, to be honest even we don't know. We can tell you with absolute certainty will won't be good. It could be an obvious hoax, or it could be a small program that will automatically load itself in your PC in a blink and do nasty things...anything from recording all your keystrokes (and sending that to them) so eventually, they'll know everything about you (like social security numbers or bank accounts or things needed to steal your identity), or it could be a window that'll pop up in a day or so, telling your files are locked or infected and try to extort $$$. Literally it could be anything that will ruin your day.

The key is to look before you click! If you have any questions, feel free to call. We are deemed essential & open.

Be safe and wash your hands!

01/07/2020

ATTN WINDOWS 7 USERS: ONLY ONE WEEK TO GO!

The end is nigh for Windows 7 – here’s what you need to know