Can you recover deleted text messages?

Cellphone users can recover deleted text messages on some phones and operating systems. Because the data does not disappear until overwritten by the system, applications can retrieve recently deleted files that remain in a phone's memory. Users may also recover deleted messages by restoring a previous phone backup.

A user with an iPhone device may restore lost messages by connecting the phone to his computer and loading previous backups that have the messages intact. If no backup copy exists on iTunes or in the cloud-based backup utility of the iPhone, some paid applications can scour memory on the phone and any external storage media device to locate and restore recently deleted files. These can only restore files prior to the system overwriting them.

Android device owners can also use third-party tools to restore deleted text messages. An Android user may need to connect his device to a PC and enable USB debugging to allow a thorough search of the phone for recently deleted files. Text messages likely have a unique folder in the system, making it easier to locate and recover these files. Proactive Android users can install applications that ensure text messages remain intact until manually removed, helping prevent the need to recover files in the future.