Source
r/techsupport•
samplebitch

WWYD? Bought a hard drive on Black Friday. It arrived and is clearly opened/returned.

Open | Hardware

So on Black Friday, I bought a Western Digital Red 10 GB hard drive (WD101EFBX to be specific) on Amazon for around $160. The seller store was the official Western Digital storefront.

(TL;DR: Bought a 'new' hard drive, I did receive what I ordered but all packaging had been unsealed. Want some opinions on whether to keep or send back.)

I received the package today. It came in the average Amazon plastic shipping bag packaging. Inside the packaging was a typical cardboard box that hard drives get shipped in. The flap to open it was taped shut with that brown, paper-ish shipping tape that has thread in it to make it more sturdy.

I say 'was', because it was sealed at some point. When I removed the outer shipping bag, I immediately noticed that the tape was broken. "How odd", I thought. That tape is usually pretty sturdy and it would take a hell of a beating during shipping to make that tape fully tear apart - plus the box was in good shape otherwise. Red Flag #1

Thinking this could just be the result of some aggressive shipping, I opened the cardboard box. In it was what I expected - a hard drive, wrapped in a metallic, anti-static bag, and placed in plastic molded braces that would prevent the hard drive from moving up/down violently during the shipping process.

The thing about that anti-static bag, though - normally it's sealed and you then need to open it like it's an MRE or a packet of microwave-ready rice. Rip the top off, serve the contents. And when I opened that cardboard box and removed the hard drive from its shock-proof bumpers, I found that the hard drive was wrapped in that anti-static bag that I expected, but that the part of the packaging that you'd rip off to open it was already ripped off. Red Flag #2

So even though I thought I bought a brand new, factory fresh hard drive, I have one that's been opened and returned. It could be just fine. It could also have malware, trojans or whatever on it - honestly that was my first thought. No way in hell I'm putting this thing in my PC with my other hard drives without it at least having gone through the refurbishment process at the factory. It could also be a completely different hard drive and the label has been swapped, although I must say that it doesn't appear to have been tampered with - the drive is free from scratches, dust, and the label is as clear and clean as you'd expect with a new hard drive.

Finally - I can't get a replacement. I was able to chat with Amazon support and apparently because Amazon "can't see private sellers' inventory" they can't send a replacement. So I can only get a refund, and since it was a black friday deal I'll end up paying quite a bit more to get the same or similar drive.

Am I being overly cautious? Would you just suck it up and maybe do a full drive wipe/format? Or would you send it back? One part of my brain says to send it back as that's shady AF, the other says "we were really looking forward to that extra space, and we got it for a price we likely won't find again any time soon".

Posted Dec 7, 2022, 12:50 AM UTC

12
Sator73•

I would just plug it in and run some software like ChristalDiskInfo to check the power on time, total reads and writes and basic specs. then copy a large amount of files to it to check for hacked firmware. I'd say it is extremely unlikely to cause physical harm to your PC, if there even is anything fishy going on. (That is unless you have reason to believe that the drive had been physically altered) If you are worried about potential malware, you can create a bootable Linux USB, unplug your other drives and check it that way first. Most likely explanation: someone else ordered it by mistake, unpacked it, realized their mistake, sent it back and the seller then inspected and resold it. The drive is technically still new in box, just not unopened.

2
MoNelly24•

It sounds like you may have received a used or refurbished hard drive instead of a brand new one. While there may not be any issues with the hard drive itself, the fact that the packaging has been opened and the hard drive has potentially been handled by someone else raises some concerns about its condition and potential for any hidden issues. Additionally, the seller's response to your concerns about the condition of the product is not reassuring.

In this situation, it may be best to return the hard drive and request a full refund. While it may be tempting to keep the hard drive due to the discount you received, the potential risks and lack of support from the seller make it not worth the potential headache. It may be worth considering purchasing a hard drive from a different seller or retailer to ensure that you receive a brand new, unopened product.

1