How to decrypt a WD MyBook drive after its removed from the enclosure?

Decrypting a WD My Book drive after removing it from its original enclosure is extremely difficult or nearly impossible, because:

⚠️ Important Fact: WD My Book Drives Use Hardware Encryption

Encryption is done by the USB-to-SATA bridge board inside the enclosure

Even if you didn’t set a password, the data is still encrypted automatically by that chip

Removing the drive and connecting it via SATA or another enclosure will not decrypt the data

🔐 What This Means:

If you remove the bare hard drive from a WD My Book and connect it:

It will show up as uninitialized, raw, or full of gibberish

You cannot access the data without the original enclosure's circuit board, which contains:

The encryption key

The controller that handles decryption transparently

✅ Only Way to Access Your Data:

You must use the original enclosure (with its USB interface board). Steps:

Reinsert the drive into the exact same enclosure

Connect via USB as normal

If there was a password:

Use WD Security software to unlock it

If no password:

The drive should mount and be readable automatically

🧩 But What If the Enclosure Is Damaged?

If the USB board is physically damaged:

Try to replace it with an identical board from an identical model and serial number range (very difficult to match)

Even then, if the encryption key doesn’t match, data will not be readable

🛠️ Recovery Options (Last Resort):

Professional data recovery services (e.g., DriveSavers, Ontrack) may be able to help, but it's expensive

DO NOT attempt firmware reprogramming or board swaps unless you're experienced—this can destroy data permanently

✅ Recommendation Going Forward:

For future storage, if you want to avoid this lock-in:

Use unencrypted bare drives

Or use VeraCrypt/BitLocker on external drives where you control the encryption

Would you like help confirming if the enclosure is still functional or finding a matching replacement board?