Western Digital in trouble with portable SSD failure: face class action lawsuit

In recent months, there has been a persistent stream of complaints from users regarding malfunctioning portable SSDs from Western Digital and SanDisk, resulting in a spate of data loss incidents. In May of this year, Western Digital released a firmware update intended to prevent these portable SSDs from “unexpectedly disconnecting from computers.” Regrettably, the remedial action appeared less efficacious than hoped, with the update failing to resolve the core issues. In fact, some users found their situations exacerbated, not only losing data or having their SSDs shift to a read-only mode but also discovering their portable SSDs completely inaccessible.

According to media reports, the affected products pertain to the 2/4TB SanDisk Extreme Portable/WD My Passport portable SSDs, manufactured post-November 2022. Given the substantial global sales volume of these products, it stands to reason that a considerable number of users are grappling with these challenges.

Recently, Nathan Krum from California initiated a lawsuit against Western Digital due to issues with his 2TB SanDisk Extreme Pro SSD. Having spent $180 on the portable SSD last May, he soon discovered all the data on it vanished. Although he sought reimbursement, he was not fully compensated. The case is anticipated to evolve into a class-action lawsuit, with the plaintiff asserting that tens of thousands of American users have been adversely affected.

While this is not the inaugural instance of storage device manufacturers facing legal entanglements, the present circumstances appear rather bleak for Western Digital, potentially exposing them to multimillion-dollar liabilities.