Can a cell phone provider retrieve old text messages that have been deleted?

While phone companies supposedly do not store the content of text messages, competent IT workers may be able to retrieve deleted messages, according to CIO.com. Generally, though, most IT departments cannot retrieve the content of deleted text messages.

Most phone companies and IT departments do not store and are unable to retrieve the content of deleted text messages. However, certain mobile forensics experts can retrieve thousands of deleted text messages, as well as messages and pictures from apps such as Snapchat. Whether or not text messages are easily retrieved also depends on the make and model of the phone, according to CIO.com.