Ask HN: Is Amazon distributing malware infested laptops?
2 by mattymf | 0 comments on Hacker News.
I recently bought an upgraded HP laptop from Amazon. The memory and storage were upgraded by Oydisen Electronics. After 2 weeks of use, the laptop shut off. In restarting, an HP screen let me know that no OS was detected. I worked through some HP troubleshooting steps and the laptop could not detect an SSD. I tried taking the back panel off to see if the SSD had somehow come loose, but it is glued to something in the middle, and forcing it off would mean breaking the back panel and maybe the motherboard if that is what it is glued to. I asked the seller about this and they just told me to return it, but I had already saved so many personal files to the drive when it disappeared, and I do not feel comfortable returning it like this. I have tried Linux/Windows USB installations, but neither could detect any drives (after USB). It seems that I will be taking the $1000 hit on this. Amazon refuses to refund me without a return, and returning it would mean submitting my financials, health records, passwords, etc., to the mercy of Oydisen Electronics. Could this be a self-destructing laptop by design of Oydisen Electronics? It certainly looks that way to me.