You can make a difference in the Apple Support Community!

When you sign up with your Apple Account, you can provide valuable feedback to other community members by upvoting helpful replies and User Tips.

💡 Did you know?

⏺ If you can't accept iCloud Terms and Conditions... Learn more >

⏺ If you don't see your iCloud notes in the Notes app... Learn more >

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

Panic. All my email has disappeared from iCloud. I did not delete it, and now it's working again, but only from today. What happened to my old emails?

Sorry for the long header, but this is my first question.


Today, for no apparent reason, my iCloud inbox/sent items/junk/trash everything has disappeared from all my devices. I checked iCloud, and there's nothing up there either. I did not delete all my email, either intentionally or by accident.


Meanwhile, iCloud is now working again, but all the old mails are gone, I'm hoping not forever.


How do I recover all this missing material, which is essential both to my business and personally?


thanks

iMac, Mac OS X (10.7.4)

Posted on Jul 30, 2012 10:05 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jul 30, 2012 11:39 PM

This sounds as if you need the attentions of MobileMe Support (I know you're on iCloud but there is no free support for that unless you happen to have AppleCare, and MobileMe Support have helped some people). Go to http://www.apple.com/support/mobileme/ww/ and select your country. In the next window click on a category to expand it, then on a subject to get a link to 'live chat'.

86 replies

Aug 13, 2012 10:28 AM in response to suzannar

They had to give me a temporary password while they resolved the problem ( It took some hours ) and the guy I delt with kindly called me back to check I knew how to do, it as it is my apple id too ... pretty critical. I told him that I already knew but he held the line while I changed it - They are helpful at support - but in my opinion, I think apple have messed this up just look at this thread showing others having a similar or identical issues. It may be a small number but a similar thing seems to have kicked off in May this year too. My advice is get on to iCloud support , get them to call you back and see if the PW change can resolve it - Some how they mail boxes came back but I am well paronoid now and have lost faith in the apple badge of honor!


https://appleid.apple.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/MyAppleId.woa/

Aug 30, 2012 8:11 AM in response to BrianGrand

Right around the same date of this original post, all of my sent e-mail back to 2006 and 8 months of my inbox, as well as all of my individual mailboxes had disappeared. Since I was up late working that night, I actually watched them disappear in front of my own eyes. Apple called me back in the morning and after many phoe calls with suupposed specialists/geniuses??? they were not able to retireve my e-mail. They did acknowlegde that they were switching servers which caused my e-mails to just disappear ???? They also told me that it was my fault for no backing up locally..??? Yes, my lesson on that is learned but I do no think that any company has ever treated me the way I was during several of these phone calls. I still have the numbers I have been a .mac .me and now cloud customer for since 2003. After asking for an explanation, I was told that the engineers had none??? they just did not know where my e-mail went....????

OK Apple, yes you are right, I should have been better about backing up locally but for you to loose all of our e-mails in some cloud not backing up my e-mail when you "switch servers" it totally inexcusable. I have paid for your .mac service since 2003...

If there is a fix then please help me and if as you admit you have made a mistake then please hlep me with the time it is taken to try to recover to communicate and have people resend 8 months worth of important information and e-mails and help me figure out how I can ever get back those last e-mails my father and I wrote back and forth while he was still able to communicate with us via computer before he passed in February. I find this all so very extremely sad. I know I'm just someone who used to be a trusted customer and you are a big company but I certainly expected more than fo you to just write me off with a "you know you should have backed things up, and we can't do anything for you!!!!

Sep 21, 2012 7:07 PM in response to et7

What they told you about "backing up" was lie. I have a 2 TB Time Machine (TM) backup and my whole system was backed up. Guess what? I lost all my emails too...even with a TM backup. As It turns out, with the old system (pre-icloud) the emails were alledgedly backed up. I am getting the same BS story from the "Senior Advisors." They obviously are instructed to say "gee, this is the first I've heard about lost icloud emails." I've been waiting 2 weeks for the guru's at the top of the mountain to get back to the "Senior Advisors." No answers yet!!!!!


My next step will be a write-up in Wired or USA Today. What they fed you about backup is disgusting. They lied to you to put all the blame on YOU in order to try to cover their _ss. I really thought that Apple was above that type of unethical behavior.

Sep 21, 2012 8:56 PM in response to Edward-one

What is happening ?? I had same issue a week after 'me to iCloud' turn over 6/31/12. I got , after nearly one week ,my emails back--- after hours of discussions with clueless apple support. At the time they claimed ignorance,yet the blogosphere was filled with thousands of complaints. All who have iCloud should be worried ! This could happen to you!!

I ,also, had backed up via cloud , my emails/files. I was told at that time ,,,,that ,that may not help. Jeez. Again, I got my system back,,,,but, with reports continuing ,,, I am concerned. OBY,,,that Apple apologist from UK,,,I wish he was blocked frm this forum. Worthless advice. Assumes this stuff is not happening. Likely uses a non Apple service himself, ,,since he clearly does not have a clue ! I suspect he uses the new Apple 5 map app,,,and , is delighted with it,,, since he doesn't know where he is,, anyway. Read "Innovation" by Prof. Clayton Christensen. It describes the history of very successful firms who lost their way, were too arrogant , did not listen to their customers..... gone.

JWSO

USA

Nov 2, 2013 11:46 AM in response to BrianGrand

This has just happened to me this morning, thousands of emails gone. There are a few emails in some folders but the vast majority of them have disappeared.


I have a backup of them on my GMail account from about 2 weeks ago but this will still mean that I will have around 100 emails missing.


This isn't good enough Apple, where are my emails?

Nov 3, 2013 10:07 PM in response to MadKiwi0

It seems to me that Apple simpy don't care any more, there used to be a way of getting online supoprt back in the MobileMe days, now there is nothing.


It's pointless calling them as I don't currently own any products covered by warranty or Applecare they will want to charge me to fix an issue that is clearly a problem with their own service.


I'm sorry to say that I'm really starting to lose my love of all things Apple, after over 6 years of being an Apple zealot I can't see me staying one in the future.


I've taken my email back to GMail now and as devices come up for replacment it might be time to look at other alternatives that don't cost an arm and a leg like Apple gear does.

Jan 11, 2014 6:13 AM in response to BrianGrand

This problem is still happening, and Apple still has no response or solution. All my emails between December 9, 2013 and Jan 9, 2014, have vanished from Icloud.


A bit of a scam for Apple to be charging for a secure cloud based storage solution when it can't or won't deliver the goods and doesn't acknowledge the problem or respond to complaints. They are getting paid for reliable backup/security. Scam!

Panic. All my email has disappeared from iCloud. I did not delete it, and now it's working again, but only from today. What happened to my old emails?

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.