We recover your data

Cost depends on what is wrong with the device. Because there are many types and models of storage media, we must diagnose the device, determine whether spare parts are needed, and estimate how many work hours the job will take (based on similar past cases). Once that's done we can send you a fixed quote. If a recovery quote is declined, diagnostic hours are billed according to our price list. If the quote is accepted, you may receive a down-payment request if spare parts need to be ordered.

We diagnose the device and then send you a detailed report describing the estimated chances of recovery and a price quote. We use data recovery equipment from Acelab, Deepspar and HDD Surgery — pioneers in data recovery worldwide and leaders in the industry.

It's hard to predict in advance — projects vary significantly. You can however choose between standard priority, express or emergency service. Choosing express or emergency does not speed up the actual recovery work itself — it only means we begin your project sooner than we would with standard priority. Standard-priority jobs are handled in the order they arrive, with a typical wait of around 5 days from the moment a device is received by Datatech or one of our partners.

If your computer won't read your disk, it's important to power off the computer immediately — or the drive itself if it's an external drive — and unplug it. Do not attempt recovery or download free software from the internet. In most cases the issue is a hardware failure, and software solutions help not at all and can actually make the damage worse. To maximise the chance of a successful and safe recovery, bring the hard drive or your entire computer to us as soon as possible. Our specialists have decades of experience and know every kind of failure in SSDs and hard drives, and know how to recover your data as safely as possible while minimising further damage.

After recovery work is complete you receive a file list in .html format that you can open in any browser. It shows all the data we were able to recover and is sent to confirm that the recovery succeeded. Data is delivered either on a new drive — which you can buy from us or bring your own — or we send it electronically for small amounts (under 100 GB).

It can happen that recovery proves impossible — for example, replacement heads have been ordered but are damaged during read attempts because of microscopic surface damage on the hard drive. We succeed in recovering data in more than 92% of cases received and approved over the past decade, so the odds are good. We are upfront from the start and tell you in the quote what we estimate the chances of good recovery to be. If you accepted a recovery quote and the project does not succeed, you receive a 50-70% discount on recovery work* depending on the device type, but you still pay for spare parts that were purchased.

We very regularly receive smartphones and laptops that have been exposed to liquid or moisture. It's important that you do not attempt to power on the device after it has been exposed to liquid — doing so passes current through the device and can lead to further damage. Cost varies considerably, but these are the most difficult projects we take on, so expect a minimum of 10 work hours for a laptop or smartphone. The type of liquid also matters. We need to assess each case individually and provide a fixed quote after inspection.

We offer all customers the option to ship the device to us for free. You simply create a service request and choose "send device by post". On the next page you fill in your address and receive a tracking number and a barcode. You pack everything carefully, take it to your nearest post office, scan the barcode at the counter and a shipping label is printed that you affix to the package.

We work to a strict security policy that is reviewed annually and we are currently in the process of obtaining ISO 27001 certification. All Datatech staff and partners are bound by confidentiality towards the service buyer, and must treat data and matters they become aware of with the strictest confidence. The confidentiality obligation applies both outside and inside the company and also if a Datatech employee leaves the company. Datatech will under no circumstances release customer information or personal data to a third party. Datatech's data stores are offline and encrypted with strict access control — only the technician working on the case has access and only while the work is in progress. Data is permanently deleted seven (7) days after it is delivered to the service buyer. All quotes and agreements with service buyers are confidential between Datatech and the service buyer.