‘Wiped’: Catastrophic phone software update exposed

Thousands of Aussies have reportedly had their smartphones wiped after hitting go on a run-of-the-mill software update.

less than 2 min read

January 4, 2023 - 2:06PM

‘Wiped’ Catastrophic phone update exposed (7NEWS)

There are fears a recent Samsung software update could wipe the phones of thousands of Aussies, with some reportedly left with nothing but a blank screen.

Phone repair services have warned customers on social media to avoid hitting go on the latest prompted Android software update, 7 News Adelaide reported.

“Tell your Samsung friends not to update their phones,” one store told its customers.

“The recommendation is don’t update your phone until the glitch is fixed,” a South Australian store also informed customers.

According to reports over the last week, the glitch renders the phone unusable.

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Samsung users have been warned against completing the latest software update. Picture: 7 News Adelaide

Fed-up customers went to Samsung stores for a fix, only to learn they would likely need to perform a ‘factory reset’ on their devices. Picture: 7 News Adelaide

Most people experiencing the glitch report the phone being stuck with the Samsung logo on the screen.

Concerned customers flocked to Samsung outlets in the last week with the issue.

Many were reportedly told the only fix was a factory reset – meaning anything not backed up would be lost.

One unfortunate customer told a 7 News Adelaide reporter outside a service centre that they had lost a year’s worth of memories.

“Not being super tech savvy, unfortunately – I haven’t backed anything up,” she said.

“So I’m losing all my 2022 photos because I take everything on my phone nowadays.”

“I’ll have to track down all my contacts again,” said another.

Samsung Australia believes the issue may be limited to South Australia. Picture: Gaye Gerard

Luckily for most Australians, Samsung Australia claims it has only received reports from customers in one state.

“Samsung has received reports from customers of an issue when updating their phones. At this time, these reports are from customers based in South Australia only,” a company statement said.

“We are continuing to investigate this matter.”