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Thread: Beware! Seagate Personal Cloud NAS

  1. #1
    Join Date: Sep 2012

    Location: East Anglia UK

    Posts: 1,219
    I'm Marc.

    Default Beware! Seagate Personal Cloud NAS

    I recently picked up a 4gig NAS drive 'Seagate Personal Cloud' for reasonable money, but I'm writing here to warn off any potential purchasers and to check a couple of things with anyone else who has one.

    Generally its a good value NAS type drive seemed to suit my modest needs perfectly, however it took me two days to get up and running - I'd switch it on and log in to it, it would tell me it wanted to update the firmware and then say it couldn't do the installation and fail, I'd factory reset rinse and repeat to no avail. I finally managed to get it to skip the update and it finished configuring itself and then finally the update worked (from within it's own settings panel.

    So far so 'OK'

    Now, I also run my own DNS server so that I can block advertising and malware at my router, one of the benefits of this is that I can also see all the outgoing requests from the devices on my network (great for trouble shooting and to catch naughty software quickly). Low and behold I can see the NAS making DNS requests every 3 minutes for a bunch of sites:

    apple.com
    hp.com
    microsoft.com
    oracle.com
    gnu.org

    The NAS is hitting these sites over 700 times a day, now I don't much care for any of the dot coms but I'm unhappy to be causing issues for gnu.org.

    The icing on the cake is that Seagate Support is utterly atrocious, they've not responded to queries put in through the webform on their website, the have a twitter acct called seagage_support which just told me to phone them, expect their phone support line is open 7 - 4 Mon-Fri and I'm in gainful employment during those times, so currently I'm a bit stuck with this thing.

    Does anyone else have one of these things and the ability to monitor what it's doing on your network to see if mine is an isolated incident or if this is a 'feature' ?

    If you're thinking of buying one of these may I urge you to reconsider - I'm currently viewing mine as a 'buy cheap buy twice' mistake.

  2. #2
    Join Date: Feb 2013

    Location: W Lothian

    Posts: 99,005
    I'm Grant.

    Default

    Dont sound good Marc. I had a wd one once and didnt get it going well for me. I got shot. Stick to my own storage now. Dont like the sending of data constantly and you might be able to shut that up. Might cause it to crash of course too. Seagate used to be a good company..shame
    Regards,
    Grant .... ؠ ......Don't be such a big girl's blouse

    I've said it before and I'll say it again: democracy simply-doesn't-work
    .... ..... ...... ...... ................... ..... ..... ..... ..... .....
    FIIO K7 BT, M11 PLUS, BTR7, KA5 - OPPO BDP-103D - PANASONIC UB450 - PANASONIC 4K ULTRA HD TV - PIXEL 6 - AVANTREE LR BLUETOOTH - 2* X600 SOUNDCORE - HEADPHONES INCLUDE, FIIO, NURAPHONES', FOCAL, OPPO, BOSE, CAMBRIDGE, BOWER & WILKINS, DEVIALET, MARSHALL, SONY, MITCHELL & JOHNSTON - 2*ZBOOK'S- MERCURY BD ROM, ROON, QOBUZ, TIDAL, PLEX, CYBERLINK, JRIVER - MULTI HDD'S -

    Oh my god! There's nothing wrong with the bidet is there?

    “Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But if you wish to know what a man really is, give him power. This is the supreme test. It is the glory of Lincoln that, having almost absolute power, he never abused it, except on the side of mercy".

    “You see these dictators on their pedestals, surrounded by the bayonets of their soldiers and the truncheons of their police ... yet in their hearts there is unspoken fear. They are afraid of words and thoughts: words spoken abroad, thoughts stirring at home -- all the more powerful because forbidden -- terrify them. A little mouse of thought appears in the room, and even the mightiest potentates are thrown into panic.”

    "You don't have free will. You have the appearance of free will.”

    “There's a war out there, old friend. A world war. And it's not about who's got the most bullets. It's about who controls the information. What we see and hear, how we work, what we think... it's all about the information!”


    ***SMILE, BE HAPPY***

  3. #3
    Join Date: Sep 2012

    Location: East Anglia UK

    Posts: 1,219
    I'm Marc.

    Default

    Yeah, well I've just blocked those addresses for now as I don't need them so there's no data going out or coming back at least.

    I should have done more due diligence, as I really only wanted a NAS not all they consumer crap they've bundled with it - I can avoid that stuff pretty well but the mindless polling of these websites that they don't want to acknowledge or provide any support for is really winding me up!

  4. #4
    Join Date: Jan 2008

    Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK

    Posts: 110,012
    I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.

    Default

    Sorry to hear of your problems, Marc. It's most bizarre, as I own the very same unit, which I use to steam music files to my Raspberry Pi, and it's done so faultlessly since day one of ownership....

    But then, I don't try and do anything 'fancier' with it than that.

    Marco.
    Main System

    Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.

    Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.

    Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.

    CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.

    Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.

    Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.

    Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.

    Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.

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  5. #5
    Join Date: Sep 2012

    Location: East Anglia UK

    Posts: 1,219
    I'm Marc.

    Default

    Thanks Marco,

    Don't get me wrong, after the initial teething issues the NAS aspect of it is fine and it works well for my needs on that count.

    As is often the case with these things everything is fine as long as everything is fine, the moment there's an issue you get to see the real mettle of a company and this one is a sorry case.

    Do you have any means to check the requests to 'out there' internet that your device is making to see if you might also be affected by the issue I've found? (router firewall logs etc) I'd be really interested to know if this is something that only I'm a victim of or if there are others who just haven't noticed this behaviour.

  6. #6
    Join Date: Sep 2012

    Location: East Anglia UK

    Posts: 1,219
    I'm Marc.

    Default

    Oh dear, this isn't going well.

    I finally got a response from Seagate 'support'

    Dear Marc:

    Thank you for contacting Seagate Support.

    I understand that you would like to know if there is way to set the requests. I apologize for any inconvenience this may be causing you. I will be happy to assist you.

    The calculations you provided show as 480 per day. This is not a huge load to the bandwidth.

    Unfortunately, there is not a way to limit or control these in any way.

    Again, i apologize for any inconvenience this may be causing you.

    For additional assistance, feel free to contact us at:
    http://www.seagate.com/gb/en/about/c...nical-support/


    Regards,

    Heather
    Seagate Support

    So they want to quibble my DNS log (unfortunately she's done her maths wrong and it's that x5 because multiple sites are being hit, and 3 minutes was an approximation)

    It's not their bandwidth so it's not for them to judge what an acceptable use of it is.

    So apparently Seagate are quite happy to have devices out there spamming servers they don't own, without the permission of the device's owner and will do nothing to stop it.

    Not a company I will be making the mistake of dealing with again.

  7. #7
    Join Date: Feb 2013

    Location: W Lothian

    Posts: 99,005
    I'm Grant.

    Default

    Hope you tell them so too, and let them know you will be letting everyone you know....in on this "dirty little secret" they have gone down on my estimation too.... i wonder if there is a small print getout clause..
    Regards,
    Grant .... ؠ ......Don't be such a big girl's blouse

    I've said it before and I'll say it again: democracy simply-doesn't-work
    .... ..... ...... ...... ................... ..... ..... ..... ..... .....
    FIIO K7 BT, M11 PLUS, BTR7, KA5 - OPPO BDP-103D - PANASONIC UB450 - PANASONIC 4K ULTRA HD TV - PIXEL 6 - AVANTREE LR BLUETOOTH - 2* X600 SOUNDCORE - HEADPHONES INCLUDE, FIIO, NURAPHONES', FOCAL, OPPO, BOSE, CAMBRIDGE, BOWER & WILKINS, DEVIALET, MARSHALL, SONY, MITCHELL & JOHNSTON - 2*ZBOOK'S- MERCURY BD ROM, ROON, QOBUZ, TIDAL, PLEX, CYBERLINK, JRIVER - MULTI HDD'S -

    Oh my god! There's nothing wrong with the bidet is there?

    “Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But if you wish to know what a man really is, give him power. This is the supreme test. It is the glory of Lincoln that, having almost absolute power, he never abused it, except on the side of mercy".

    “You see these dictators on their pedestals, surrounded by the bayonets of their soldiers and the truncheons of their police ... yet in their hearts there is unspoken fear. They are afraid of words and thoughts: words spoken abroad, thoughts stirring at home -- all the more powerful because forbidden -- terrify them. A little mouse of thought appears in the room, and even the mightiest potentates are thrown into panic.”

    "You don't have free will. You have the appearance of free will.”

    “There's a war out there, old friend. A world war. And it's not about who's got the most bullets. It's about who controls the information. What we see and hear, how we work, what we think... it's all about the information!”


    ***SMILE, BE HAPPY***

  8. #8
    Join Date: Sep 2012

    Location: East Anglia UK

    Posts: 1,219
    I'm Marc.

    Default

    No point telling them directly, I'll just let their media monitoring team follow me round the internet, they'll let me know when I get close to causing an issue for them.

  9. #9
    Join Date: Sep 2012

    Location: East Anglia UK

    Posts: 1,219
    I'm Marc.

    Default

    Well, another couple of emails and things are starting to move (although whether it's in the right direction remains to be seen)

    I asked them to confirm that they are aware that the device is compromised and that they are actively choosing to do nothing about it (essentially so I could report them to trading standards / NCA) so now I'm told my enquiry has been escalated, what's worrying through is the claim that

    "this type of connection is interrupted by the router's lowest security settings so there is no threat to your device and your data. "

    Of course if it were true I wouldn't be able to access any of those websites..... indeed it's only the fact that I'm now actively blocking them at the DNS request stage that prevents the call going out, and that's just me, lord knows how many of these devices are spitting out these spam requests across the globe.

    It also kind of misses / avoids the point.

    My advice remains 'don't buy Seagate if you can help it, especially not if you think you might ever need support'

  10. #10
    Join Date: Sep 2012

    Location: East Anglia UK

    Posts: 1,219
    I'm Marc.

    Default

    I'd gone quiet on this as Seagate contacted me and asked me to supply further information on 27-01-17 so I got back to them promptly with everything they asked for and left them to get on with it.

    At the end of last week I'd heard nothing so sent an email asking what was going on, no response.

    So here I am, logged in to my DNS server and for today we're currently up to 802 requests for each of the 5 sites listed above (all blocked at source by me, but who knows how many devices are out there doing this) and there's not a peep from Seagate, who appear not to be concerned in any way that their devices may be compromised (or that they have a dissatisfied customer, perhaps worse?)

    So, if I didn't make myself clear enough before. Please think twice before buying a Seagate Personal Cloud (or any Seagate device for that matter) their support is piss poor and their devices may well be compromised.

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