Some time ago I backed up several files (both documents and media) to a Kingston Data traveller 3.0 with 16 Gb of storage.
Looking at it now, I found that I could not delete or modify the files ; the computer said that it was read-only.

I decided to use Gparted and reformat the drive, thinking this would allow me a fresh start, but Gparted also saw it as read-only (see screenshot).

Looking at the properties of the drive, the drive was shown as containing 61.5 Gb of files ; on later attempts this figure would vary, and sometimes no figure was shown. The information shown in the lower part of the window saying 10.5GB free and 5Gb used never changed (see screenshot).

Each time I opened the properties window, it closed by itself within a few seconds (and the window showing the files closed at the same time) and when it did so the identification of the drive as shown in the Computer folder changed at the same time—where it had been identified as a Kingston Data Traveller, it suddenly showed as “Phison 2307 PRAM”.

Once this happened the flash-drive could not be reopened until I removed it and replaced it.

I’ve tried this with a couple of different laptops running Linux Mint 20.1 and 20.2, and an another running Windows 7 with the same results.

Is there anything to be done, or is this simply a hardware failure?

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Kingston rebadging a cheaper drive is no surprise, but it's an indication that all is not well if the cheapo name is reasserting itself. Ditto the read-only status.

Back up the drive. 99% chance it's dead. You can try reformatting if you want your 1% chance, but I'd never trust it again.

+1 to business_kid. Flash drives are notorious for failing into read only mode. I would anticipate that data recovery may be possible but restoring it to be usable is not likely.

Did you try a "mount -o remount,bind,rw /olddir /newdir" to force a rw mount? See also "man mount".

I found two or three references that all seemed to suggest that this was a hardware failure: here is a sample:
https://www.quora.com/My-USB-stick-n...ow-do-I-fix-it

My impression is that the Phison 2307 PRAM designation (or some variation thereof) is what a system throws up if the connection is erratic or the flash0drive is failing, so although Kingston may have sold me a lemon, it doesn't look as if they were rebadging a cheaper drive.

So I'll leave this post open for a day or two, while I see if I can copy any of the files while they are still accessible, and then I'll hit it with a hammer.

The hammer it is.

Rip

*scnr*