Approximately 85 percent or higher of the data recovery cases we see here at 24 Hour Data are due to user error. The national statistics say about 87 % of all data loss is caused by user error, so our customers are no different in that regard than the rest of the population. (Of course, we like to believe they’re a lot smarter for choosing 24 Hour Data as their data recovery service!)

How can you become even smarter, still, and avoid accidentally deleting, damaging or corrupting the important files that store your critical data? Here are a few tips.

1 – Password protect your computer, phone, MacBook, iPad or tablet PC. – A simple-to-remember but difficult (for others) to guess password can protect your files from accidental or malicious deletion by children or even just friends who aren’t very tech-savvy. With the right passwords on your computer, at least you know if your files get deleted, you only have yourself to blame.

2- Slow down and look twice. Most computers require two steps (an action and a confirmation) before you can successfully delete a file. Think twice before you “empty the garbage pail” on your Mac. What’s in there? Can everything really be deleted?

3 – Don’t shut down your computer in the middle of a operation. – If you turn off your computer without following proper procedures, any open files, and especially files that are in a read/write state, are at risk of deletion or corruption, rendering them inaccessible. Always shut down properly and make sure all your important files are saved and closed.

4- Use the Autosave function. – It may interrupt your thought-flow and take a few seconds, but using the Autosave function on your Excel, Word, or other applications can be a lifesaver. In the event of a hard drive crash, autosave may not allow you to recover all your data, but you might get enough of it that you can resume work without losing much time. 

5 – Don’t attempt to recover lost or deleted data yourself. If you don’t know what you’re doing, using third party software or other techniques to recover lost or deleted files could actually erase those files forever. When you get that sick feeling in your stomach because you realized you just hit delete when you didn’t mean to, call 24 Hour Data right away. The odds that we can perform a logical recovery very quickly — and at a lower price than you might expect — are good.

We live to save the day here at 24 Hour Data; let us do our jobs. And most importantly, don’t feel bad about it. About 85 to 87 percent of our customers have called us for the same reason.