Agent Johnny Utah, aside from being the name of Keanu Reeves’ character in Point Break, is an outsourcing technique used by Geek Squad to keep labor costs low.

How does it work?

They plug your computer into AJU, and a “Black Ops Specialist” takes over. Where are the Black Ops Specialists? Well, that’s top secret, but Geek Squad will say that they’re “all over the world.” Sexy.

Why are they called “Black Ops Specialists?” Here’s Geek Squad’s official (and unfortunately worded) explanation, taken straight from their training materials (emphasis ours):

Wikipedia.com defines a black op is a covert operation. In this context, “black” is a term used in political, military, intelligence, and business circles to refer to activities that are either secret, or of questionable ethics or legality. Black Ops missions often fall into the deniability category, where no government will claim responsibility for the action. This fits, you never saw us, we were never here.

Golly, they’re right.

A little bird tells us that Best Buy will be enforcing a 25-30% Agent Johnny Utah quota on Geek Squad, so if consumers are wondering what will likely happen to their computer when they bring it to Geek Squad these documents will give you a pretty good idea.

Agent Jonny Utah – F.A.Q.(PDF)
AGENT JONNY UTAH OVERVIEW (PDF)
GEEK SQUAD REMOTE REPAIR INFORMATIONAL GUIDE (PDF)

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