Before being given this drive, it was prompting to format. WD support stated to the owner of the drive that recovery software would recover the files.

Upon receiving the drive and connecting it to a computer, a new drive showed up in my computer, however it appeared empty. I looked to see what windows was reporting with the drive and it said the capacity was 0 with a file system of RAW. Then I looked to see how the recovery softwares I have read the drive, 2 out of 4 reported that it saw the drive by model number, but could not read from it.

There has been no password set on this drive. I have read some related posts prior to posting, and did not locate an exact match within a short period of time. What could I try next with this drive?

Sounds like some sort of firmware issue. I assume the drive spins up and stays spinning?

Ideally needs pro assistance, if the data is valuable.

There's not really a lot you can do without the appropriate tools (and the knowledge and/or training on how to use it)

_________________
PC Image Data Recovery
http://www.pcimage.co.uk

New!! HDD-PCB.COM for all your PCB and donor HDD requirements!

Yes, like pcimage said, if the data is valuable I would do much things with in order not to make any further damage.

Contacto a pro and at least you'll get a quote.

You could try downloading and running WD Smartware software, see what that makes of the drive. Although I suspect it will not recognise it.

_________________
PC Image Data Recovery
http://www.pcimage.co.uk

New!! HDD-PCB.COM for all your PCB and donor HDD requirements!

The drive does spin up and stays spinning with no audible noise. I have loaded the Smartwave software and it sees the drive for a very quick moment, but the visible notification goes away. Which tools would be suitable in this scenario? I am aware of a pro that is close to me and the associated prices, if needed.

You need some tools that will allow you to access drive ROM and Firmware, to be able to further check it.

If you know someone near you, at least you could contact him to get a quote.

2.5 WD Passport (WDBACY5000ABL-00)
This is USB3.0 Essential Blue drive.

With symptoms you have described, most probably, it has common HW encryption issue.
Thats why you can't reach access to user area.

_________________
Angel Data Recovery

Thank you all for the information. The owner of the drive is considering contacting WD to recovery the data. With this said, I don't want to take the case apart, yet. I have worked with other external hard drives that have the encryption chip on a controller board separate from the hard drive. I have also seen with 2.5" drives that the usb connection goes directly to the drive. Could anyone give me an idea about which category this drive would fall under?

As DR-Kiev says, this is a USB3.0 2.5" Passport. So, it has usb embedded on pcb using hardware encryption on this same board.

_________________
http://www.northwind.gr
SandForce SSD Recovery
Ransomware Reverse Engineering - NoMoreRansom! partners

That is what I was suspecting. Thank you for the confirmation.