Five causes of lost digital holiday snaps
It’s all very well taking loads of snaps to store on your ever-increasing memory card, but what if you can’t access your photos when you get home? According to new research by Ontrack Data Recovery, this does happen – and they’ve outlined what they’ve found are the five main causes.
1. Reformatting
All too often, people forget that reformatting a memory card will remove all the files stored on it – including protected pictures. This data can only be retrieved by experts – so think again before you reformat.
2. Overwriting
Another common mistake is the accidental overwriting of images held on camera memory cards with new photos. Always check you’ve successfully transferred your images onto your PC, laptop, CD or DVD before taking new pictures.
3. Cracked and damaged media
Packing memory cards into overstuffed suitcases can result in them becoming bent or damaged on the journey home, making them unreadable. Wrapping cards in clothes and placing them in the middle of your case offers some degree of protection in transit – ensuring the safety of your pictures during your return trip.
4. Burnt media
Are you holidaying in hot weather? Your memory card isn’t so keen. Leaving memory cards in an elevated temperature environment such as a car on a sunny day or close to a heat source such as a radiator or oven will increase the chances of failure. Add to that direct sunlight too. It’s unlikely to cause damage to the digital photos on the memory card but may stop the card being recognised in a card reader.
5. Summer holiday injuries
Digital cameras often get dropped in the sand or splashed with water around the pool, damaging smart media to the extent that photos can’t be viewed. Only an expert can recover digital images from smart media damaged in this way, so be careful to keep digital cameras in padded and watertight cases to stay safe.
2,227 consumers were surveyed in the research.
