Sydney · Australia-wide
Deleted videos are the first thing a device overwrites.
Yes, a deleted video can usually be recovered from a memory card, USB stick or hard drive, as long as nothing has been written over it. Videos are large, so their space is the first the device reuses. Stop using it, check the free places below, then have it assessed.
Before you do anything else
Protect the only copy.
- 01
Power it down
Every minute a failing drive runs can overwrite the bytes you need.
- 02
Skip consumer scanners
Desktop recovery apps write as they scan. That is the opposite of imaging a dying disk.
- 03
No repair, no format
chkdsk, First Aid and reinstall fix the disk; they do not preserve what was on it.
- 04
Call, then decide
Free triage: lab job, cleanroom referral, or Recovery Studio.
When / stop
Check the free places first, then stop.
Some deleted videos have not gone anywhere yet. On an iPhone, open Photos, then Albums, then Recently Deleted; clips stay there for 30 days. In Google Photos, open Library, then Trash; clips stay for 60 days. On a computer, look in the Recycle Bin or the Trash. Then check for a cloud copy. This is a genuine do-it-yourself case, and you should try it before paying anyone.
If the video is not in any of those places, stop there. Do not record, save, install or repair anything on that device, and do not format it. Every write can land on the clip you want. Take the card out of the camera. Unplug the stick or drive. Leave the phone alone. Footage that was on a CCTV or dashcam recorder is a different job, covered on the CCTV and DVR recovery page.
What we do
Image the device, then rebuild the clip.
We image the device read-only and work on the copy. Deleting a video removes its entry from the index and marks the space as free. The picture data stays where it was. Where the old directory entry survives, it tells us where the clip started. Where it does not, we carve the clip by its signature from the image. Long recordings are often stored in pieces; we join them in order.
An MP4 or MOV file has two parts: the picture and sound data, and an index called the moov atom that tells a player where each frame sits. A recovered video that will not play usually has a missing or damaged index and intact picture data. We rebuild the index from the stream, so the clip plays again. Recovery Studio is the Mac app we run in the lab; a licence is available if you want to work an image yourself.
On a modern internal SSD or a phone, the device itself often erases deleted data through TRIM or secure deletion, and a factory reset discards the phone's encryption keys for good. You hear that at assessment, before any quote. Cards, sticks and hard drives keep deleted video until it is overwritten. Each device has its own page: memory card recovery and phone and tablet recovery. Ready to send it in: start a case.
We do not run a cleanroom. Mechanical failures (clicking, non-spinning, head crash) are referred after free assessment. We will not open the drive on a bench and make it worse.
By device
Where the video went, device by device.
| Device | What happens to a deleted video | What to do now |
|---|---|---|
| Phone | Recently Deleted keeps it for 30 days on an iPhone or 60 days in Google Photos. After that, secure deletion and background writes usually erase it. | Check the album now. Then stop using the phone. Do not install a recovery app or reset it. |
| SD card or USB stick | The index entry goes. The clip stays until a new recording or file lands on the same space. | Take the card out of the camera. Do not format it, even if the camera asks. |
| Hard drive | Same as a card: the clip waits until it is overwritten. | Unplug it. Do not run a scanner that saves onto the same drive. |
| SSD | TRIM tells the drive the space is free and the controller erases it, often within minutes. | Power it down anyway. Assessment says whether anything survives, at no cost. |
What it costs
Published band, then a fixed quote.
Phones, USB sticks and memory cards from $249 after free assessment. Fixed quote. No recovery, no fee. Hard drives from $249; failing drives that need imaging from $449. Assessment is free. The figure you agree is fixed before recovery starts. Full lab bands and Recovery Studio licences are on Pricing.
First response within 24 hours. Scan and initial feedback on what is recoverable within 72 hours. Recovery within 14 days, usually much sooner. Scanning is the long part, especially on large drives. The amount of data and the method decide the rest.
FAQ
Common questions.
Can deleted videos be recovered?
Usually yes from a memory card, USB stick or hard drive, provided nothing has been written over the clip. Videos are large, so the device reuses their space before anything else. On a modern SSD or a phone the device may already have erased the data, and you hear that at assessment.
Why will my recovered video not play?
The index is missing or damaged. An MP4 or MOV needs its moov atom to tell the player where each frame sits. A carved or interrupted clip often comes back without it while the picture data is intact. We rebuild the index from the stream and the clip plays again. Keep the file.
I deleted a video from my phone. Can you get it back?
Check Recently Deleted first: 30 days on an iPhone, 60 days in Google Photos. Beyond that window it is hard, because phone storage is encrypted and the phone writes to itself constantly. Do not factory reset. Assessment is free and tells you plainly whether anything survives.
Can you recover videos from a formatted SD card?
Often, yes. A quick format replaces the index and leaves the clips in place. We image the card read-only and carve the video from the copy. Filenames are usually lost with the old index. Do not record on the card again before it is assessed.
Next step
Tell us what failed.
Free assessment. Fixed quote before recovery starts. No recovery, no fee. Sydney drop-off or Australia-wide by tracked post.