FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

Welcome to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ page). Below, we answer some of the most common questions our customers ask. If you find that your question is not answered on this page, please email us at info@flashguardian.com.

Q: The camera/computer says the card is unformatted, and asks whether to format it. Does this mean all the information is corrupted?
A: No, the pictures (or other files) are most likely still there on the card, but the file structure of the card has been corrupted. It will be possible to retrieve all (or almost all) of the contents of the card using our data retrieval suite.

Q: I can't see anything on the card! Have all my pictures been wiped?
A: See previous answer.

Q: Should I let the camera/PC format the card?
A: Do not allow the camera or computer to format the card (though this will not prevent retrieval of most of the images).

Q: My hard disc drive (or microdrive) is making very strange noises - I think it is damaged - can it be recovered?
A: If the drive is physically damaged, it is very likely that the data can still be recovered. In these cases we will need to have the disc examined in our cleanroom to determine whether recovery is possible, and what the price will be.

Q: Is there anything I should do to make sure I can get the files back?
A: DO NOT attempt to put any more data onto the card/disc, as this will overwrite the data you want to retrieve. The card/disc should not be used again until the images have been retrieved.

Q: What do you actually do?
A: We have a suite of automated analysis tools which perform much of the work. However, our technical experts examine the low-level scan results from every card/disc, to ensure that the scan has performed as expected.

Q: What is your success rate?
A: If your data is physically present on the media, we will be able to successfully retrieve it. In practice, in almost all cases, virtually every file will still be completely intact. This is still true, even if the data has been deleted and/or the media reformatted.
For hard disc drives our recovery rate is around 90%.

For more information, or to request data retrieval services or quotations, please email us at info@flashguardian.co.uk.