New iPad cases – in stock!

Good morning friends, I’ve run across a new product that will appeal to some of you; we are constantly asked about cases and iPad protectors, and our sister company Mission Survivor has brought a new carrying case to our attention.

These are organizers made by Maxpedition that come with a lifetime warranty. The Triptych Organizers have a padded center pocket for your device (the medium version is perfect for the iPad Mini, the large version suits all full-size iPads) and has “book style” flaps that hold essential gear like chargers, pens, notepads, tools or other small items.

Each of these bags are made out of 1000 denier nylon (very tough), they are water repellent (very nice) and all of the stress points are double stitched for strength (super strong).

There are several colors to choose from (sorry, none in pink yet!) but we are successfully selling these daily to our online customers at Mission Survivor. This is a cross over product that might be of interest so I thought I’d share!

Thanks, let us know if you have any questions. Learn more or place an order for your Triptych Organizer today by clicking here!

Best, Ryan

Internet Fraud. It’s a challenge.

Hello friends,

I’ve been dealing with a few orders that have come through our website here at Mission Repair that are suspect…

In today’s “order online” age of business, the potential for fraud orders is high; a criminal can hide behind a computer screen from anywhere in the world and try “everything in the book” to scam businesses out of their products.

Worried about online security? You should be. Fraud is on the rise, greatly impacting online business owners and their customers. We take your security very seriously investing in current and ongoing security-based infrastructures and to make sure our website (www.missionrepair.com) is fully PCI/CISP certified. All of this is dedicated to help protect you (and us!) from cyber criminals.

While we here at Mission Repair mostly provide services to our customers, we also sell parts and do it yourself repair kits for iPhones, iPods and tablets as well. There are many people that want to do this kind of work, so it just makes sense that we sell them the repair parts and tools that they need!

It’s pretty much a given that a fraud order here at Mission Repair will be for a product rather than a service. Other red flags that pop up for us are:

1. The customer will ship to a completely different address. Sometimes out of the country.
2. The shipping will be Overnight. They want to receive the product(s) fast.
3. The telephone number on file for the customer doesn’t match the geographic location of the billing address and typically is never answered.
4. The IP address of the customer doesn’t match the billing address. Yes, we capture everyone’s IP addresses upon order placement.
5. The orders are placed online rather than being called in.
6. The email address on file doesn’t particularly match the customer billing information. Typically, most people have SOMETHING in their email address that signifies that it’s them. Not always, but sometimes.
7. The order seems exceptionally large and high dollar.
8. We can see other previous attempts via our saved shopping carts of the same or similar orders with different credit cards.

While any ONE of these is typically never a red flag, when an order has ALL of the them, we take extra steps when we can to verify the order and ship or cancel when appropriate.

What typically happens is that the criminal obtains the victim’s credit card number and billing address – somehow – and then places an order online using the customer’s information. It’s then shipped to a different location. This way, the criminal gets the product(s) and is never to been seen again…while the innocent victim receives their credit card statement in the mail a couple of weeks later to see the bad news…fraudulent charges to businesses they they’ve never heard of! Yikes it’s scary.

Firstly, let me tell you that it’s safe to purchase off the Internet as long as you know that the site you’re using is secure. Like Mission Repair’s website. We are fully 100% PCI/CISP certified which means that we exceed industry standards in solidifying our hardware and hosting facilities. We pass inspection from an independent auditor who performs on-site assessments, and we complete a rigorous screening process to remain on credit card certified lists.

What is PCI? The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is a set of requirements designed to ensure that companies that process, store or transmit credit card information maintain a secure environment. Essentially any merchant that has a Merchant ID (MID) should be PCI compliant. Not sure? Ask the company you are buying from!!

We’re required to delete your credit card information from our databases and I’ve also gone a step further; your credit card information is blocked from all of my employees after it’s entered so all we can EVER read back to you is the last 4 digits after an order is placed. It’s just one more step to security and we are determined to keep you safe.

Why am I talking about all of this? well i just got a call from my Merchant asking me about an order that is under investigation for fraud, which sparked me to tell all of you that we take this criminal activity very serious. Remember that as a consumer you can call your credit card company at any time to dispute fraudulent credit card charges…and always check your statements. Just a little tip to keep the world going ’round.

Have a good day!

Best, Ryan

Geocaching – is it time to get outside?

Hello folks,

Have you heard of “Geocaching”? It’s not anything new…but I just received an email about Geocaching at our local Arboretum here in Overland Park and it sounds like I might need to go check it out.

Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the Geocache (container) hidden at that location. I suggest just using your iPhone GPS system- there’s no need to go buy a separate hand-held GPS device!

There are different rules for different “games”, but typically when you find a “treasure”, then you leave one as well. Or you simply sign a guestbook in the hidden cache and tell all of your friends about it.

Our Arboretum says: “bring the entire family out for a fun-filled adventure. Find out why over 5 million people throughout the world hunt for containers, called Geocaches, using hand-held GPS devices. Brief classroom presentation followed by a search for two Geocaches. Adult presence required for ages 13 and under.”

I think it’s time for the Arter’s to get involved! My kids are older than 13, but heck, I’m gonna make the go anyway.

Maybe it’s time to hide a few Mission Repair gift certificates in hidden Geocaches across the country? I’m going to make some plans. Stay tuned.

Does anyone have any good experience with Geocaching? Let me know!

Take care, Ryan

Mission:Complete! We’re opening Monday!

Hello friends-

It’s been a long road but we made good time…Mission Repair Express is going to open Monday morning, St. Patrick’s Day, 3/17/14! Yes, now I can look forward no longer painting for a while 😉

We’ve got some surprises in store for you, and we know that many of you have been waiting for us to open this new store. In fact, we’ve received several calls setting appointments for Monday; however remember that appointments are not necessary and we are open 7 days a week to serve you. We are at 5604 Johnson Drive in Mission, Kansas. Get it? “Mission, Kansas?” Yes, it’s perfect.

Mission Repair in Olathe is still going strong, but customer demand has driven this new location. We encourage you to stop on by and check us out. If you do pop in on Monday, we’re handing out $15 off coupons (no purchase necessary) for your next visit in the future (if you ever need us). Tell us what you think about the new store – what kind of accessories you’d like us to carry, what kind of services you’d like us to perform, or any other general inquiries or ideas are welcome.

So I’m happy to announce that we are on final cleanup and walk through this weekend. In fact, I’m sitting at the front desk typing this blog from the new Express location this afternoon and it feels great!

Thanks for your patience, the service lab is open on St. Patrick’s Day…and the party favors are on us!

Have a great weekend, Ryan

6 more likes- that’s what I’m looking for today! Actually I’d really like to send you a $15 gift certificate too.

Hello again friends- just 6 more likes and we will reach the 13,000 likes milestone on our Mission Repair Facebook page. I have a good feel that this will happen today.

If you’re not a fan on Facebook, now’s your chance- click this banner below:

And “like us” on Facebook. Why? Because it’s the cool thing to do! I mean, you’ve checked your Facebook page in the last 30 minutes haven’t you? If not, here’s a chance to click through, check out our Mission Repair fan page, and then I dare you to post this on your personal Facebook page:

“Ryan at Mission Repair asked me to post this as my status”.

If you do, tag Mission Repair on that status and I’ll mail you a $15 gift certificate toward your next repair with us. Yes, I will need your mailing address- we will handle that over email. Once your post is complete, just email us (newsletter@missionrepair.com) confirming your post is complete, we will verify the post and mail out your gift certificate immediately. No purchase necessary, but I will send you a gift certificate that you can use online or if you visit one of our locations. Sound good?!?

OK, let’s see if I can squeeze out those 6 likes before the end of the day.

Take care, Ryan