File Retrieval

Worst experience! I did quite a bit of research trying to find a reputable company to recover my data. I had originally found file retrieval on the Better Business Bureau website and was considering them and another company. I decided to go with File Retrieval because when i called and talked to David I was kindly assured that they could most likely recover 100% of my data and within my budget. I explained I was on a super tight budget and asked what the most economical way of getting my data back was and he said if I don’t need the data right away then he can assess it for free and give me the lowest rate possible for the work since it could be worked on in between other jobs. He said it may take a while since I was choosing the most economical plan but I was ok with that.
He sent someone out to pick up my drive within an hour and by the next day they called me to tell me they were going to start the assessment and that they needed a $ 299 deposit to do so. I paid the deposit and then a couple days later I received a call saying the assessment had been complete. I was greatly surprised because when we talked he mentioned it would take a while, but I just thought maybe they were slow or something. I received my quote for the work which was around $ 1600 (way more than what David and I discussed but I trusted it was the lowest rate) so I signed the papers. I didn’t have time to go over what was recovered or the contract that day. Another David from the company called me the next day saying he was waiting for my signature agreeing that the data recovered was what I was wanting and to get final payment. I was still quite a bit taken back by the price as it was much more that what I was initially told, so I took that opportunity to ask if this was the lowest rate possible. He told me No! He said that I had selected the «Premium» service for a fast turn around and they had to stop other jobs to work on mine… Whaaaaaaat? I explained to him that there had been a mistake. I specifically asked for the least expensive option and instead communication was lost somewhere and they charged me for something I didn’t sign up for. He proceeded to tell me that I had already signed off on the price and that I was legally binded to it and had to pay. I was furious understandably.
I trusted that I was getting only what i had asked for but that was not the case. I asked to speak to a manager so he transferred me to Robert. Robert appeared to be very nice and compassionate and apologetic about my situation which was comforting. We worked out an agreement over the phone that I would send in an additional $ 800 on top of my already paid $ 299 and we could call it a day. He apologized again for the inconvenience and said he would be e-​mailing me a shipping label in order to send in my drive and money order for the remaining balance of $ 800 we agreed to, however I never received the e-​mail with the label from Robert. And when I called back in no one in the office knew what I was talking about and at the time I couldn’t remember who it was I was talking to in customer service. When I finally figured it out and got ahold of Robert He said «oh it has been too long now I can’t honor that rate anymore.» «what???» We went back and forth for quite a while when he finally agreed to honor his word and allow me to send in $ 800 but I had to send my money order that day. I said «perfect I can do that.» Literally 10 minutes later I received a notice from my credit card company on my phone saying that I was just charged the full amount of $ 1395 to my credit card. I immediately called Rob. He told me that the charge was done by the computer but that he would let accounting know they had to refund me for the difference. This was upsetting to me as I was wanting to pay via money order but said ok, can you please send me something in writing stating this? He said he would e-​mail it. I was also shocked that I had been charged because I hadn’t signed off on the data yet and it states in my contract that I won’t be charged until I sign off on the data. It is clear not that Robert had no intention of honoring the rate we discussed on two separate occasions. I can only assume he was giving me lip service so that I would sign off on the data.
Long story short it has been almost a month since I was charged the full outrageous amount and I still don’t have a refund and I also don’t have my data. They sent me a drive with a code and won’t release the code until I sign off. I am not about to pay for a premium service when i specifically asked for the economical one. It is a matter of principal at this point. I have filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau and waiting for an update. This company is crooked and unethical and i wish I never chose to go with them.

I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 3, 32 GB, Verizon model. Precious pictures and videos of my son’s first five months were saved to the internal storage of the phone. One day my son entered the incorrect swipe pattern too many times, triggering an ominous message: «Incorrect PIN. You have ten incorrect attempts remaining before your phone will automatically launch a factory data reset. All data will be lost.»
Anyway, I didn’t know my backup PIN and didn’t want to risk resetting my phone, so I Googled potential workarounds. In my case, there was absolutely no possible way to access the files remotely (my phone was stock, not rooted, so I couldn’t sideload a password wipe; and USB debugging was disabled on the phone before my son locked it, so the ADB method was also out). I was extremely frustrated and nearly had panic attacks at the thought of losing those memories that were literally locked in my phone.
Fortunately I found FileRetrieval after Googling «mobile forensics.» I browsed their website and was quickly contacted by one of those «Chat Now» dialog boxes. Don’t know if this was a real person or a bot, but I was assured that my problem could be fixed, and that a technician could call me right away. The dialog box made it clear upfront that my cell phone service was not eligible for the free diagnostic, which was unfortunate but nonetheless appreciated from a transparency standpoint.
The technician called me at my requested time, and after describing in detail my exact situation, I was told there was a chance I could get my files back. Recovery wasn’t guaranteed, but confidence was expressed that the company had handled this exact issue in the past. This was a relief, but I still wanted to do some research before committing to large fees, so I didn’t commit just yet. After checking with competitors who (i) admitted they likely couldn’t get around the PIN problem, (ii) would have charged more in the event of successful data recovery, or (iii) a combination of both, I went back to FileRetrieval. The case manager I had, Tyler Diamond, was very patient with my several questions and emails (I literally had 5+ separate calls and 10+ emails that day, which covered specific questions and requested particular assurances). I opted for the $ 299 Premium service, understanding that this didn’t guarantee anything except an expedited diagnosis.
Because FileRetrieval had an office in Los Angeles that was close to my own place of work, I was able to drop off my cell phone instead of FedExing it. The dropoff process on a Wednesday went smoothly, and I eagerly awaited the diagnostic results (6 hours per the Premium Service). The very next day, Tyler called with the great news that the data could be retrieved. Pricing, although pretty steep, was carefully explained to me: a $ 285 deposit to start the data retrieval attempt, a $ 719 balance in the event of successful data recovery, and separate charges for (i) transferring the data onto another media device and (ii) returning my original hardware. While I wish the charges would have been less expensive, given my despair earlier in the week, I ultimately didn’t mind the high cost for saving my data. So after agreeing to all the charges, work began immediately. I expected an update by Wednesday of the following week, at the earliest (4 – 6 business days for data recovery, not including weekends, was what the Premium service promised). Again my expectations were surpassed when I was called the following Monday with the news I wanted to hear: all of my pictures and videos were saved, and I’d soon be getting everything returned to me by the end of the week.
Of course you know how the rest of this goes: I got everything back on Wednesday, instead of Friday, and was able to transfer everything from the USB stick that housed the recovered files onto my computer. My phone was returned in the same FedEx package, which had several layers of separate envelopes to cushion the contents. The phone itself looked as if it was carefully handled throughout the process (no damages or scratches anywhere), and turned on just fine when I tested it.
I can’t recommend this company strongly enough to anyone who is facing a devastating data loss like I did last week. Was it pricey? Sure. Was it worth it? Absolutely. Were they professional, responsive, transparent, and accommodating? Yes to all of these, and at every stage of the way. While I hope to never encounter this problem again, I know that FileRetrieval is an available resource that can get the job done. I repeat: my problem had no do-​it-​yourself solution, couldn’t be fixed by Samsung OR Verizon OR Google (attempts with all of these companies, whether via website or in-​store or over the phone, got me nowhere), and couldn’t be fixed by some of FileRetrieval’s competitors — but FileRetrieval was able to live up to all its promises. Can’t thank this company enough for all that they were able to do.