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Dropbox created new folders with files that can't be opened - unprompted
My Dropbox, completely unprompted, moved the location of my folders in Finder under only the Dropbox tab, and at the same time created a significant number of new folders with hundreds of files - none of which can be opened. I was able to find the files I had previously, but I'm concerned that these files and new folders may be either malware or my own files which I no longer have access to.
I'd love to understand how to return things back to normal and why this occurred in the first place.
I am also unable to open the Dropbox app itself - when I click it it opens up Finder. Solutions from existing forums which cover this issue did not work for me.
Thank you.
Device
MacBook Air 2024
Operating System/Browser (if using the web)
macOS26.3.1
Dropbox App Version (if using the app)
Can't find, because I can't open the app.
This is the error message when I try to open my folders from their previous location in Finder:
This is an example of the new folders Dropbox has created:
This is what the files inside these folders look like:
This is what comes up when I try to open the files in these new folders:
1 Reply
- Hannah
Dropbox Community Moderator
Hey jmbee, thanks for bringing this to our attention.
These look like some kind of temporary files, but let's see what we can find out.
Can you please clarify what you mean by the following?
moved the location of my folders in Finder under only the Dropbox tab
Do you mean that the location of your Dropbox folder changed? And where was it moved to?
Also, can you access these files from your account online or do they only appear in your local Dropbox folder?
Let me know and we'll go from there.
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