Holidaymakers suffer cruel, cruel summer
~ Ontrack Data Recovery reveals top reasons for digital photo disasters ~
Holidaymakers are in danger of losing priceless summer memories as they can’t access their digital photos when they get home.
Ontrack, the data recovery expert, has revealed the top causes of memory card disasters it has experienced from digital camera users desperate to recover their holiday snaps.
1. Reformatting
Users often forget that reformatting a memory card will remove all the files stored on it including protected pictures and print orders. This data can only be retrieved by experts so we advise users to think again before you reformat.
2. Overwriting
A common mistake is the accidental overwriting of images held on camera memory cards with new photos. It’s easily done ! So check, check and check again that 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 and ensures the safety of your pictures during your return trip.
4. Burnt media
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. It is 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 users should be careful to keep digital cameras in padded and watertight cases to keep them safe.
“Recent research 1 found that almost 90% of consumers now own a digital camera but around one-third don’t back up their photographs,” said Phil Bridge, business development manager at Ontrack Data Recovery. “The danger is that they could lose once-in-a-lifetime memories if anything happens to their memory cards that store their images.”
“Our list of memory card disasters highlights the need to protect smart media and alert digital camera users to the most common problems so that they can make sure it doesn’t happen to them,“ he added.
