Could a refurbished laptop have a virus or malware?

A certified refurbished laptop from Edify ships with its storage securely wiped and a fresh installation of Windows 11 Pro, so no virus, malware or data from the previous owner carries over. The wipe happens during Edify's three-stage refurbishment process, which includes a 31-category Final Quality Check. Units arrive free of prior accounts, BIOS passwords and activation locks. This is categorically different from buying a second-hand laptop off a marketplace, where the seller's software state, browsing history and credentials can persist. If you are buying from a non-certified source, the risk is real and you should run a full format and OS reinstall before use. With a certified refurbisher like Edify, that step is already done and verified before the laptop is packed.