Wiping the machine isn’t a fix — it’s giving up with your data as the casualty.
Real diagnosis takes skill and time. Wiping and reinstalling takes neither, and it makes almost any software symptom disappear — temporarily. So the parasite reaches for the format button first, often without backing anything up or even warning you clearly, and calls the erasure a repair.
“A fresh install is the only way” for a problem that clearly isn’t. No offer to back up your files first. Casual about data loss. The same issue returns a week later because the actual cause was never found.
Finds the real cause and fixes that. If a reinstall genuinely is the right call, they back up your data first, confirm with you, and make sure you get everything back. Your files are treated as irreplaceable — because they are.
Ask, before anyone touches it, whether your data will be preserved and how. Keep your own backups regardless. A wipe should be a last resort with your informed OK — never the first move to dodge a hard diagnosis.
This describes a common tactic and how to recognize it. It does not describe or accuse any specific business or person.