Used by NASA · the FBI · the U.S. Navy · Since 1999
Spotlight on eProvided Professionals
- No Data, No Data Recovery Fee
- Chip-level flash specialists
- Forensic casework for law enforcement
- Free evaluation, no obligation
What Do eProvided’s Data Recovery Professionals Do?
They rebuild failed storage at the chip level. For 27+ years the team has worked under microscopes on cracked cards, snapped USB drives, SSDs and phones, handled forensic cases for law enforcement, and reviewed every recovered file with the client before the data goes home.
“Steady hands matter here. Most of our work happens under a microscope, one solder joint at a time.” — Bruce Cullen, founder, eProvided
eProvided insight into a data recovery professional. Today our daily lives are filled with cutting edge technology. Interestingly enough, this technology does not always work. Career opportunities in the technology field are expanding on a daily basis. Data recovery professionals are finding their skills useful in many different areas. One thing is for sure, they never have a dull day at the lab.
What Makes eProvided’s Recovery Team Different?
eProvided’s recovery team specializes in chip-level flash memory recovery, a discipline that needs proprietary readers and NAND-decoding skill that most generalist labs lack. The firm has operated since 1999, recovering data from USB drives, SD cards, SSDs and phones for clients including NASA, the FBI and the U.S. Department of the Navy. See the full scope of eProvided’s chip-level expertise on its data recovery services page.
Chip-level work is not one method for every device. On a USB stick, an SD card or a microSD card, the memory chip holds the data in a form the lab can read directly, so reading the chip is the right path. Phones and modern SSDs are different: their data is encrypted with a key held in the processor or controller, so the team repairs the original board, moves the processor and memory together to a donor board, or revives the drive’s original controller. Choosing the right path for each device is a large part of the job.
A Look Inside: A Day in the Life of Data Recovery Professionals
The data recovery experts at eProvided generally never know what each day will bring. At any moment, there could be a student or officer of the peace with sudden data loss where attention to detail becomes more crucial than ever, and recovering the data is an instant, vital need. Many days our file recovery experts spend much of their time under microscopes. File recovery engineers put pieces of damaged devices back together. Many of the storage devices are broken in half and cracked.
Outside of the hands-on work, our professionals also spend some of their time going over recovered files with clients. Their goal is to make sure we have recovered the files the client needs and regained access to what they need. There is a strong emphasis on customer relationships and customer satisfaction, which makes each day full of its own unique rewards as each data recovery professional helps put back together a professional, personal or academic piece of someone’s life. eProvided reviews all cases before sending the recovered data back.
An Overview of Forensic Data Recovery
Forensic data recovery is a technology-driven process in which the recovered material will most likely be used for legal purposes. It is not uncommon for eProvided data recovery experts to work on these types of projects for an officer of the peace.
Forensic data retrieval involves the use of advanced techniques. In short, eProvided uses tools to recover and analyze data from various types of digital devices, including computers, SSDs, smartphones and all other storage media. This type of data recovery is used in legal proceedings to investigate crimes, fraud and other types of disputes. eProvided works often with local law enforcement agencies in Las Vegas, Nevada and other municipalities worldwide. Forensic data retrieval is a complex process that requires specialized knowledge and expertise, and it involves working closely with law enforcement agencies, legal teams and other stakeholders.
How Forensic Recovery Differs from Standard File Recovery
Standard data recovery uses software tools to recover data from a device’s file system. Forensic file recovery also reaches areas of a device that are not normally seen or used, to check for specific activities of interest. For example, a forensic examiner might look for evidence of internet browsing history. eProvided also looks at social media activity or email correspondence that could be relevant to a legal court case. Many of these cases involve attorneys, and everything must be documented to a T.
Forensic data recovery also recovers data that was intentionally erased, damaged or corrupted. This includes deleted emails, text messages or files a user deleted on purpose, as well as data lost to a hardware failure, and evidence in spousal abuse or domestic violence cases. In some cases, forensic examiners recover data that was thought to be lost forever, so photos or documents deleted years ago become available to attorneys or other legal counsel. The work includes documenting every step taken during the forensic recovery process, as well as any data recovered and the methods used to recover it.
Locked and Encrypted Devices
Some forensic cases involve a password-protected file or a device locked with a passcode. Here the honest limit matters. A modern iPhone (from the 3GS in 2009 onward) or a current Android phone encrypts its storage with a key tied to the phone’s own processor and the user’s passcode. Removing the memory chip from such a phone returns only encrypted data, and no lab can simply bypass that protection. On these devices, the lab restores the original board, or moves the processor and memory together to a donor board, so that the phone can decrypt its own data once the correct passcode is entered. Older and unencrypted media, such as USB drives and memory cards, do not have this limit.
Overall, forensic data retrieval is a complex and highly specialized process that needs a deep understanding of digital devices, data storage formats and security systems. Need to recover lost or damaged data from a digital device, SSD, flash drive or smartphone? Work with a qualified forensic examiner at eProvided who will help retrieve the evidence you need for your legal case. Need deleted text message recovery from a suspect’s phone? Need to retrieve surveillance footage from a damaged hard drive? eProvided data recovery specialists use their skills to help solve crimes and bring criminals to justice.
| Standard vs. Forensic Data Recovery | ||
|---|---|---|
| Point | Standard Recovery | Forensic Recovery |
| Goal | Get the owner’s files back | Find and preserve evidence for a legal matter |
| Where the lab looks | The device’s file system | Hidden and unused areas as well, such as browsing, email and social media traces |
| Deleted data | Recovered when the owner needs it | Often the main target, including data erased on purpose |
| Records | Recovered file list for the client | Every step, method and result documented for attorneys |
| Who is involved | The device owner | Law enforcement, legal teams and other stakeholders |
An Overview of Basic Data Recovery
With so much of our lives on digital storage devices, data recovery is not a service unique to the world of law enforcement. On any given day, a file recovery specialist could be working to recover those once-in-a-lifetime digital photos from a wedding or honeymoon, assignment files for a student about to finish a huge academic project, financial files critical to a business or individual, and so much more. With the increasing reliance on digital storage devices, the need for data recovery services has become more important than ever before. Whether it’s hard drive corruption, an SSD drive failure problem, a virus attack or accidental deletion, there is always a risk of losing important data.
True specialists at eProvided see past the mere file recovery process. We see the people behind the devices and recognize that recovering their data is like recovering a piece of their lives. It’s not a task to take lightly, and certainly one to handle properly. For individuals, data recovery can be a lifesaver. Imagine losing all of your documents, photos and videos in a single moment. Our data recovery specialists work to recover these files so that irreplaceable memories are not lost forever.
For businesses, the stakes are even higher. Financial documents, client files and other critical data can be lost in an instant, putting the entire operation at risk. Our data recovery specialists help businesses recover lost data quickly, keeping downtime short so that operations can continue as usual.
What You Can Do to Aid a File Recovery Problem
If your storage device is damaged, faulty or corrupt, you can be instrumental in the recovery process. The more information you can provide about how the device came to be in its current state, the more power you give the expert to choose the best recovery technique. You can also prioritize the data on the device so the technician pinpoints the most critical information to recover first, making sure that the most important data is safe and sound.
Tell the Lab
- What happened just before the device failed: a drop, water, a power cut, a warning message
- Which folders or file types matter most to you
- Whether anyone has already opened or tried to repair the device
Avoid
- Powering a damaged device on again and again to “test” it
- Running free recovery software on a device with physical damage
- Opening the case yourself before the lab has looked at it
Here is a short video about how a recovery moves through the eProvided lab:
eProvided Thanks All Customers for 27+ Years in Business
Let’s celebrate the many years of service; being in business 27+ years is an accomplishment. eProvided wants to thank everyone involved. No matter what the damage could be, no matter what type of storage drive, we handle cases others will never attempt.
Don’t trust this delicate process to just anyone. It takes a genuine understanding of the technology in question and a drive to exhaust every possible recovery method to achieve success. Always remember that document recovery is a last-ditch effort. Sometimes a storage device is too damaged or the files are too corrupt for more than a partial recovery. However, it never hurts to try. Questions? Ask us at eProvided!
What Our Customers Say
Frequently Asked Questions
Recovery Services for Every Storage Device Class
The team covers every class of failed storage from one bench: SSD data recovery for NVMe and SATA drives, professional hard drive data recovery for mechanical and logical failures, USB flash drive data recovery for broken connectors and dead controllers, memory card data recovery for SD and CompactFlash, NAND flash chip-off recovery for BGA, TSOP and monolith packages, and microSD card data recovery, including monolithic cards.
Every person on the bench started with the same belief: the device on the table holds a piece of someone’s life. That is still the standard today.
Talk to the Professionals Who Will Handle Your Device
Describe what happened, and the team that does the bench work will tell you what the next step is. The evaluation costs nothing.
Start My Free Evaluationor call (866) 857-5950
Related Recovery Services
The same bench and the same engineers handle every one of these services: