Anyone who buys cheap hard disks from unknown brands risks more than poor quality – they could be downright cheated. The data recovery company Attingo purchased several external USB hard disks from obscure suppliers such as Storite, Suhsai and Bnehhov during a routine procurement of spare parts. The result: fraud with used hard disks that seems to go on forever.
Sold as new, but ancient: what Attingo found in the cases
The external drives were advertised as new in their USB housings – but appearances were very deceptive. Inside, the data rescuers discovered, among other things, a Western Digital HDD from 2021 and a Samsung drive from 2009 – the latter already over 15 years old, but still functional. The drives were therefore from at least two different decades, but were sold as brand new.
The file system was also striking: all drives were formatted with exFAT. This is unusual for hard disks, as Microsoft actually developed exFAT for flash memory such as USB sticks and SD cards. Even more problematic: underneath this formatting, the specialists found old, recoverable data. As the drives were sold as new, the facts are clear: fraud.
Even branded goods are not safe: Intenso with defective data erasure
Not only cheap goods from no-name manufacturers are affected. Attingo also purchased an external USB hard disk from Intenso as part of the same test purchases – this time correctly declared as refurbished (i.e. used, but tested). However, the experts also found recoverable data here, which should actually be impossible with refurbished goods.
Intenso responded to the revelation and told Attingo that the data deletion had been carried out inadequately by the upstream supplier. The company intends to improve its internal quality assurance in future and minimize risks. A small consolation for customers who have already purchased affected drives.
Not an isolated case: Serial fraud with counterfeit hard drives worldwide
The current case is unfortunately not an exception. Reports of used Seagate Exos hard drives being sold as new – some with over 50,000 operating hours on the clock – have been piling up since 2025. This case escalated into a worldwide fraud case involving many thousands of drives, which even led to arrests in Malaysia.
Old hard drives with manipulated SMART values have also been sold as new via Amazon Marketplace retailers: At the provider UnionSine, drives from Seagate and Western Digital from 2015 and 2017 were sold in fresh enclosures – with a fake production date of March/April 2025. The SMART parameters such as operating hours and start-stop cycles had been deliberately reset to zero in order to conceal the fraud.
How to recognize counterfeit or used hard drives
If you want to be sure that your new hard disk is really new, you should carry out a few simple checks after purchase:
- Check SMART values: Tools such as CrystalDiskInfo (Windows) show operating hours, read/write accesses and the general condition of the hard disk. More than 0 operating hours on a “new” HDD is an alarm signal.
- exFAT formatting as a warning signal: If a hard disk comes with exFAT formatting, caution is advised – the file system is unusual for HDDs.
- Check the serial number with the manufacturer: With Seagate, WD and other manufacturers, the warranty and production date can be checked online using the serial number.
- Check the manufacturer’s warranty: A new 5-year warranty HDD whose warranty expires in two years according to the manufacturer’s website can only be used.
- Watch out for unusually low prices: Particularly with external hard drives from unknown brands via marketplaces such as Amazon or eBay, increased skepticism is appropriate when prices are extremely low.
What to do if you have been scammed?
Anyone who receives a hard disk that was purchased as new but turns out to be used has clear rights. Dealers are obliged to repair or take back used goods – selling used goods as new is a clear material defect and, in legal terms, fraud. In practice, many retailers will refund the purchase price without hesitation as soon as you are confronted with the SMART receipts. In case of doubt, a report to the consumer advice center or – if there is a clear intention to deceive – a criminal complaint will also help.
Anyone interested in the topic of data security should also check whether there is still sensitive data on the returned drives that could affect the original previous owners – this is an additional data protection problem that the current Attingo case has once again brought to light.
Conclusion: Don’t skimp on quality when buying hard disks
Fraud involving used hard drives is not a new phenomenon – but it is persistent. Whether via Amazon Marketplace, eBay or other platforms: Again and again, drives pop up that are sold as new but are ancient or have already been used intensively. The recent Attingo case shows that even professionals can fall for these scams. Our advice: Buy hard disks and SSDs from established retailers or directly from the manufacturer – and always check new drives with a SMART tool. If you are interested in the right models, you can also find an overview of the best SSDs for laptops.
