Confidentiality of Data Recovery Companies

There are two types of data recovery services that may be called upon when a hard drive crashes. The first is a computer repair or consulting company that may be used to repair a computer when it crashes and the other is a specialized company that a crashed hard drive would be sent to when the drive is physically damaged.

Drives that are physically damaged can often be rebuilt or the platters in the drive may be placed in another drive allowing the data to be restored. If a hard drive does not have physical damage, a computer technician may be able to use software tools to repair data access problems caused by software or the computer's operating system.

When someone is hired to do drive data recovery they will have to copy that data to another medium such as an external hard drive, CD, another computer, etc.

During the recovery process the technician may have full access to all the data that is stored on a hard drive. When this occurs you need to know whether the company and its technicians that are performing the recovery services can be trusted with any sensitive data they may have to access.

Most reputable companies that do data recovery will have some type of written agreement and privacy policy. There is no guarantee that someone will not mishandle data or information, but an agreement puts everyone on notice that your sensitive data is being placed outside of your control.

The most critical thing is what happens to data once it is successfully restored. Make sure that the company or consultant will return all data recovered and that they will not store or retain any recovered data on their storage devices or systems.

If it is discovered that data was handled inappropriately or privacy has been compromised, the written agreement may help in any legal proceedings that may be taken.

Use a little common sense when it comes to turning over a hard drive to recover data. Research the company that you will send it off to and ask others for their recommendations.