You may find many 0-byte files in the root of the C:\ drive. The file names may start with WAL. You wonder what causes these files to be created and whether they can be deleted.
The empty (0-byte) WAL* files are created by Norton 360. They can be cleared. Turning off “Product Tamper Protection” in Norton seems to fix the issue.
Links for reference
Weird 0 byte files appearing in C drive : r/WindowsHelp: https://www.reddit.com/r/WindowsHelp/comments/1cdivfi/weird_0_byte_files_appearing_in_c_drive/
What are WAL files and can I remove them – Microsoft Community:
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_10-files/what-are-wal-files-and-can-i-remove-them/7fac58b6-8ac4-40b4-b2ad-e67228bc82d9
Wal files being created on C: drive – Archive – Norton Community:
https://community.norton.com/t/wal-files-being-created-on-c-drive/231518
Update
Norton Security update released in October 2024 seems to fix the issue.
Those empty WAL – files on C: drive – Norton 360 for Windows – Norton Community:
https://community.norton.com/t/those-empty-wal-files-on-c-drive/242359/10
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