Security News > 2022 > February > Microsoft: Resetting Windows devices might not wipe all data

Microsoft says Windows customers might find that some of their files are not deleted after resetting their Windows devices with the "Remove everything" option.

"When attempting to reset a Windows device with apps which have folders with reparse data, such as OneDrive or OneDrive for Business, files which have been downloaded or synced locally from OneDrive might not be deleted when selecting the 'Remove everything' option," Microsoft explains on the Windows health dashboard.

The issue was first spotted by Microsoft MVP Rudy Ooms last week, who noticed that remote or local wipes of Windows 10 systems would still leave the user data readable in the Windows.

With windows 21h2 and a wipe the data just sits there in the windows.

The bug impacts all Windows versions under support, including Windows 11 21H2 and Windows 10 20H2 up to 21H2. Microsoft says the originating update for this newly acknowledged issue on Windows 10 systems is the October KB5006670 cumulative update that also triggered printing issues.

The company provides customers affected by this issue with a workaround to ensure that no user data is left behind when trying to completely wipe a system by resetting a Windows device.

News URL

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/microsoft-resetting-windows-devices-might-not-wipe-all-data/