URGENT:how do I recover secure deleted files or disc-important tax infor

Is there a reliable program available ?

No. Nothing short of a professional service can recover securely deleted data, and likely not even then.

(55365)

Securely deleted – how?

A real secure deletion overwrites the phyiscal sectors on the disc so that the original data cannot be restored. Some secure delete applications even overwrite these sectors more than once and with special patterns.

A professional restoration of such deleted files is very unlikely, although theoretically possible. Let me put it that way: if it were data that would save all mankind, I guess it would be made possible. But since it's just personal files it is very unlikely someone would actually go through a time consuming and expensive process to recover your data.

Sorry.
Andreas.

Try Prosoft's Data Rescue 3, but call them to express your needs prior to purchase. You can download and have a "trial" run of the program, wherein it will list all files that it can find. Recovery is limited to a single file that's no larger than 10 MBs.

How did you delete it?
1) Did you put it into the trash first?
2) Did you delete it without putting it into the trash?
3) Did you use a secure deletion application that wipes the data completely, i.e. it overwrites that data so it cannot be restored?

If 3), then you don't have a chance to rescue your files. A professional would have to disassemble your hard drive and use physical methods of reconstructing what once was on that drive (it's also called “forensics”). The larger the drive, the longer it will take. Could take weeks to months to years. This was my “save all mankind” scenario…

If 1) or 2), you might try a data rescue software to restore your files. *DON'T RUN YOUR SYSTEM* while you work this out! Every write access to your drive will likely destroy valuable data that you are so desparate to get back! So be cautios!


ALL THIS ASSUMES that your data was on one of the fixed hard disk drives in your computer and you are running a modern operating system on it – like Mac OS of any version, including Mac OS X. E.g. a much simpler (older) operating system such as DOS (like MS-DOS) that doesn't use disk caching (or drivers/TSRs of any kind that would write data to the disk continuously) won't destroy deleted files while it is merly operating as such.

Mac OS on the other hand will write data to your disk every time you switch on your computer: log files, caches and so on… And thus it will most likely destroy what you want to restore.

SO, AGAIN, DON'T USE YOUR COMPUTER with this very disk drive!


What you need to do is get another drive with a usable installation of Mac OS, get a data rescue software of any kind installed on it and use it on your drive, that will have to be connected using an external enclosure (USB or FireWire).

Then you might have a chance.

Note that it may be possible that a Windows-based application is also able to restore files on a Mac OS formated drive. You'll have to search for a suitable application anyway, so this might just be a more open approach towards finding one.


Second, where did you delete this valuable file of yours?
1) on your system drive/boot drive/internal drive with Mac OS on it?
2) on a second drive that is installed internally?
3) on an external drive?

I did already tell you what I know about case 1). Case 2) will leave you with a better chance, since this drive isn't written to so often, but will be if you continue using it. (Does spotlight indexing and alike ring a bell?) I'd suggest disconnecting it right away!

If 3), keep it disconnected until you have a suitable rescue software at hand. I'd then suggest to start Mac OS X in safe mode (holding down the Shift key during startup), connecting the drive and immediately runnning the rescue software then.


Third, what type of media is it where you accidentially deleted this file?
1) a hard disk drive?
2) a CD|DVD-R|RW|RAM?
3) a floppy or Zip disk?
4) a flash drive?
5) … (something I didn't think about)?


You should mention this… could be importaint. All storage media behaves differently when it comes to file management (like deleting files).

I already assumed the boot drive, so I guess a hard disk drive is the media we are talking about.



So, I surely hope it was on a second drive and you didn't securely wipe the file, just deleted it regularly without using the trash first. Otherwise… I don't think you have too much of a chance otherwise…

Anyway, I wish you good luck.
Andreas