Android data recovery is possible, but it’s important to be aware of the risks. By following these tips, you can protect yourself from accidentally deleting your data. ..
Can Data Be Recovered on Android?
Android devices store data in two ways: on the internal storage and in the cloud. The internal storage is where you keep your apps and data, and when it’s deleted, it’s gone. The cloud is where Android keeps track of your past activities and saves them so you can access them later. If you lose your phone or if it gets stolen, your data is gone forever.
How Does Android Save and Delete Files?
Deleted files on most phones are not actually erased. Instead, the location of recently deleted files is marked as overwritable. The original data is then replaced when a new file is saved, overwriting it. So, while the data isn’t overwritten, it’s still technically retrievable – or it would be if the disc wasn’t encrypted. ..
Android 5.0 and Android 9 both utilize full-disk encryption, which uses a single 128-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) key that is securely stored on the device. In the case of a factory reset, all files stored using full-disk encryption are erased and completely irretrievable. ..
Android 7.0 and up feature file-based encryption instead of the older, manual-based encryption that is used on older Android devices. This form of encryption uses different keys for different files, meaning they can be unlocked independently of each other. However, this also means that when a file is deleted, its encryption key is deleted alongside it, effectively erasing it entirely.
Unless you’ve removed file-based encryption from your device, any deleted data is impossible to recover regardless of what online services claim.
An Android device’s NAND flash memory can be difficult to recover data from, as compared to computer hard drives.
A storage controller keeps track of all data on NAND flash storage. When a file is deleted, the controller marks that space as “empty”, but doesn’t actually erase it. Since data is constantly written and deleted, the controller has to monitor an increasingly detailed map of the storage.
Since Android 4.3, phones have included a protocol called TRIM. TRIM helps by telling the controller to stop monitoring deleted data, marking it for garbage collection (where the files are erased fully). Effectively, this means the longer you leave your deleted data, the less chance you have of being able to recover it.
What Data Is Recoverable On Android?
-Phone numbers -Call logs -Text messages -Location data This data can be used to track your movements, see where you’ve been, and even identify potential threats.
Recently deleted photos and data that was backed up using services such as Samsung Cloud and Google Drive are being stored in the recycling bin. If you have any deleted data that was backed up using these services, please contact us so we can help you clean it up. Data associated with your Google Account such as your contacts list is also being stored in this location.
Can You Recover Data After a Factory Reset?
It is impossible to recover data from an Android phone that has undergone a factory reset unless it has been backed up elsewhere. Data held on an SD card may still be recoverable even if deleted — we’ll cover this below.
Does Rooting Your Phone Help Recover Data?
However, with the release of Android 7.0 Nougat, rooting has become more difficult and some data recovery apps may not work on rooted devices. If you need to recover data from a rooted Android device, be sure to research the app before using it and be prepared to follow specific instructions. ..
On later versions of Android, rooting is impossible without loading the Bootloader. This effectively renders it useless for recovering data.
What About Data Recovery Specialists?
Pre-encryption Android OS devices use intricate, often destructive methods to directly access the NAND storage and recover data. For this reason, data recovery specialists use these methods to recover data that was lost or destroyed in the process of encryption.
Encryption on devices can help protect data, but since it’s impossible to decrypt the data outside of the device where the key is stored, it’s usually pointless.
Are All Data Recovery Apps Scams?
Although there are many scam apps available on the Google Play Store, many of them are legitimate. For instance, they may work perfectly fine for SD cards, older versions of Android, and other forms of storage media. ..
Many apps are scams. And keep in mind that no app is able to recover data from a factory reset (unless it’s on very early Android versions) or from phones that utilize file-based encryption. ..
If you’re using an Android phone that uses full-disk encryption, you may be able to recover just-deleted files by using one of these apps. However, the files are encrypted and inaccessible without the key.
Many data recovery apps will recover cached thumbnails and claim that they are the original photo files. This is the reason that many apps offer “image enhancement” tools. ..
How to Recover Data from your Android
If you have backed up your data or if it is stored on your SD card, you may be able to recover certain data on your Android device. ..
Check the Recycle Bin
Some photo apps, including the Gallery app, feature a recycle bin that temporarily stores recently deleted photos. If you delete a photo from the Gallery app and then later decide you want to retrieve it, you can do so by tapping the recycle bin and selecting “Recover from Recycle Bin.” ..
To access this, open Gallery and select the three horizontal lines at the bottom-right corner. Then, select Recycle Bin.
You should see how much time is left on your device before it wipes them for good.
Recover Deleted Data From an SD Card
Your SD card data is more easily recoverable than the data on Android’s flash memory. even if the files on your SD card have been deleted, or you’ve accidentally formatted the drive, you may still be able to recover them using reliable data recovery tools.
If you’ve deleted photos from your SD card by accident, we recommend using PhotoRec which is a free photo recovery app that you can install on your PC. Using an SD card reader to access the drive, you may be able to recover your photos. ..
Recover from Local Backup
If you’ve enabled periodic backups, you should be able to retrieve any data that you’ve deleted that was captured by a previous backup. ..
To access the backed up data, you will need to restore it to your computer. ..
Recover from Google Account
If you have a Google account and you enabled synchronization on your Android, some of your data might be retrievable even after a factory reset. Even better, Android 8 and higher feature automatic backups by Google One which will enable you to recover any accidentally deleted files. ..
If you have any of your personal data, like contacts, calendar, app data, Chrome browser data, or documents or files stored in Google Drive or Gmail, you should try to recover it. If you can’t recover it yourself, you can ask Google to help. ..
If you have factory reset your phone or are using a new phone, during setup, you will be able to restore all of the synced data.
How to Ensure Your Data Is Backed Up
There are many backup services available for Android devices, and you can choose to perform backups manually if you wish. The easiest options are to enable backups via the Android settings or via your Google Account. ..
Enable Local Backups
- Open the phone’s settings and select “Backup and security.”
- Under “Backup storage,” select “Local backup.”
- Click on the “Create backup” button.
- Enter a name for your backup and click on the “Create” button.
This data will now backup to the Samsung Cloud when your device idles and is connected to WiFi.
Enable Google One Back Up
To automatically back up your Google account with Google One, open the Google One app and go to Settings. Under “Backup & Sync,” turn on “Automatic backups.” ..
When your device is idle for two hours and connected to WiFi, it will begin to sync your data.
Prevention Is Better Than the Cure
If you accidentally delete your files, it’s important to back them up regularly. This will ensure that if something happens to your computer and your data is lost, you can easily recover it.
There are plenty of cloud-based services that can help you save time and effort when it comes to data storage. Some of the best options include Google Drive, iCloud, and Microsoft OneDrive.
