Western Digital has urged people who use its My Book Live external hard drive to disconnect the device immediately to prevent data loss.
The move comes after numerous users have reported total loss of their data with no explanation. Some users who investigated the data loss found in the device’s activity log that a factory reset had been initiated.
In a statement on its website, Western Digital claims that ‘malicious software’ is behind the issue, which is initiating a reset and erasing users’ data.
The WD My Book Live is no longer officially supported by Western Digital and received its final firmware update in 2015. Western Digital says:
We understand that our customers’ data is very important. At this time, we recommend you disconnect your My Book Live from the internet to protect your data on the device. We are actively investigating and we will provide updates to this thread when they are available.
The My Book Live connects to the internet via an ethernet cable, allowing users to remotely access their files. It’s possible that once the product was no longer officially supported, ‘malicious actors’ may have been able to access these devices through the back door.
WD says it is investigating the issue and in the meantime urges users to disconnect them from the internet.
Via Ars Technica, DPReview