[Q] Factory Reset Encrypted Device - Lost SD Card Data - Galaxy S III Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Dear Experts,
Device - Samsung Galaxy S3 I9300
Android Version - 4.0.4
Scenario
1. Encrypted the device for Corporate Exchange Access
2. After few days device prompted for an upgrade
3. Decrypted the device for performing upgrade
4. Upgrade performed successfully
5. Performed backup and kept the data in SD card
6. Performed a factory reset
7. Now unable to access contents on SD card
Tried re-encrypting the device with same password.. it worked fine, but still unable to access memory card data.
Please advise how to get out of this situation.
Regards,
Satish.

Isn't this how it is meant to work? A factory reset breaks the encryption in place. Restore your backup and unencrypt first.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

The problem is that the backup was stored on External SD card.. which is now un readable. Please advise

Hi Experts,
I am having the exact same issue with my S III
Any possible to retrieve my precious media files on the SD?
Any help is very appreciated

I believe if you encrypt the SD card you need to decrypt it as well before performing a FW update. Now your files are stored on an encrypted and unusable sd card which means you have to format it. I think you need to decrypt both device and extremfall storage before doing a fw upgrade. Sorry.
Edit: this is because the key store for the encryption key gets cleared during the fw update. That key would be needed to access your sd card content together with your pass code.

Recreate the keys?
So I got the same problem, my 5y/o reset the phone and left my SD unreadable because it was encrypted. I saved the data in the SD into an .iso image hoping that someday I will recover the media recorded there.
Is there a hacker out there who could produce the keys again and restore the files? I could send over the image file... I have a T-mobile Samsung Galaxy S II.
Thank you!

Related

Galaxy S Duos 2 GT-7582 decrypt Sd Card

Hi Guys,
Yesterday I have problem with my cellphone "Galaxy S Duos 2 GT-7582" and I have to factory reset.
Everything work fine but all information that I have in the Sd Card are encrypted. I see the folder and file but when I try to see don't the photos, music, videos ...
Any ideia to decryped Sd Card?
BR,
B
You were supposed to decrypt before the reset. I believe the reset would have wiped out the key to decrypting it. I'm sure it's technically possible, but will probably require a lot of time, probably Linux, and a whole lot of reading.

SD card phone back up

Since I have had no luck fixing my hotspot problem I'm going to try a factory reset. I've backed up the phone using the phones back up procedure in settings to my internal SD card. The concern I have now is I've seen other post's that mention the phone notafter factory reset NOT recognizing the password. Some mention this happening after encrypting the card? I'm not sure but my question is: Since I've added a password when I put the SD card in after the reset will I still be able to get the files back on my phone? Is backing up to the SD card a reliable way to do this or should I use another method.? Thank you

Recovering encryption key for adopted storage without root

Hi,
My friend's phone isn't reading SD cards, and we'd obviously like to get the data off of the card he's been using as adopted storage. However, the phone is not rooted and the bootloader is locked, so we likely can't copy the encryption key at all. Is there any way of recovering the data (i.e. rooting the phone without factory reset)? We'd really prefer not to lose the data on the card. The phone is a Moto G3 running the latest firmware.
(Just realised I posted this in the wrong section, my apologies! Is it possible to get this moved?)

Samsung Encrypted Memory card help to Decrypt

Hi all
I have a Samsung S20 Ultra with a memory card that all of my photos are saved to, unfortunately I had to take my phone into Samsung experience store for a screen / back cover repair, the staff removed my Memory card and told me to factory reset due to GDPR as the device had to be sent away, when my device returned in the post 5 days later I went to put the memory card back in and a notice appeared stating the memory card is encrypted to a different device! I am totally devastated as there are pictures of my father who has passed away and other images that they are the only copies I have, I know now I should have unencrypted the memory card before the factory reset. I have spoken to Samsung directly so say there is nothing that can be done.
does anyone know of a way I can get round this I would be so very grateful!
Thanks in advanced
Stu
The best thing I could suggest is a third party solution that may be able to decrypt the information on the card, such as FeExplorer. Check to see if you have a "Decrypt SD card" option in the Lock Screen and Security settings, although I suspect it won't be able to do it.
The problem is, the encryption key is unique and stored in user data. When data is wiped during a factory reset, the key is wiped as well, so even if the user configures the same lock settings (password, pattern, etc) they key would be different.
I am not aware of an absolute solution, but here is what I would strongly suggest you do:
If able, make sure the contents of the card are backed up. Use cloud storage such as Google Drive.
Keep the card in a safe place; maybe put it in a small envelope or something, and mark it in such a way as to discourage accidental discarding or wiping.
Buy a new SD card to use in the meantime while you look for a way to recover the information on the encrypted card.
I am sorry for your loss, and I wish I had a better answer for you.
Edit: Found this on another site, maybe it's worth a try. MAKE SURE YOU BACK UP THE DATA ON THE CARD IN CASE THIS GOES WRONG.
On a PC: Copy (the encrypted and unreadable) contents of the sd card from the phone to your harddrive
On the phone: Settings -> Storage -> Sd Card -> Format sd card (this erases all the data on the sd card but don't worry you have a copy on the PC)
On the phone: Settings -> Security -> Encrypt sd Card (should be real fast since it's an empty sd card)
On the PC: Copy the contents of the sd card onto the phone
On the phone: Settings -> Security -> Decrypt sd card (edit: this may take a while depending on how much data was on the card)
sorry but none of the above "solutions" makes any sense. it is not possible to recover data. encryption key was located /data/misc/vold and /data itself was encrypted, too. Furthermore one can't access /data aka userdata partition.
BUT... and here comes the but.. adoptable-storage usually is DISABLED in One UI
So how is it possible your MicroSD Card is encrypted at all? It's not, except you have installed custom ROM or installed any 3rd party encryption tool (you would remember)
There is a good chance your MicroSD Card is plain exFAT or Fat32 unencrypted file system. I recommend to use a card reader for PC and make a 1:1 dump with gddrescue and analyze the dump with photorec or other file carver solutions.
There exist tools for windows too, for example
https://www.klennet.com/carver
https://www.z-a-recovery.com
https://www.runtime.org
Don't buy any software if your MicroSD Card is encrypted, it will definitely not work.
You can easily check if your MicroSD Card is encrypted by opening raw disk image with HxD hex editor and search for any plain text or series of zeros. gparted or testdisk will tell you if partition table exist
aIecxs said:
sorry but none of the above "solutions" makes any sense. it is not possible to recover data. encryption key was located /data/misc/vold and /data itself was encrypted, too. Furthermore one can't access /data aka userdata partition.
BUT... and here comes the but.. adoptable-storage usually is DISABLED in One UI
So how is it possible your MicroSD Card is encrypted at all? It's not, except you have installed custom ROM or installed any 3rd party encryption tool (you would remember)
There is a good chance your MicroSD Card is plain exFAT or Fat32 unencrypted file system. I recommend to use a card reader for PC and make a 1:1 dump with gddrescue and analyze the dump with photorec or other file carver solutions.
There exist tools for windows too, for example
https://www.klennet.com/carver
https://www.z-a-recovery.com
https://www.runtime.org
Don't buy any software if your MicroSD Card is encrypted, it will definitely not work.
You can easily check if your MicroSD Card is encrypted by opening raw disk image with HxD hex editor and search for any plain text or series of zeros. gparted or testdisk will tell you if partition table exist
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
when you put an SD card into a Samsung ultra it asks if you want to encrypt it through their own software, no third party apps were used
True, I realized after posting. Samsung is always bit special, they tried to think differently... In that case your data was lost in the moment of factory reset.
https://www.samsung.com/au/support/mobile-devices/how-to-encrypt-decrypt-sd-card
Stu_C said:
Hi all
I have a Samsung S20 Ultra with a memory card that all of my photos are saved to, unfortunately I had to take my phone into Samsung experience store for a screen / back cover repair, the staff removed my Memory card and told me to factory reset due to GDPR as the device had to be sent away, when my device returned in the post 5 days later I went to put the memory card back in and a notice appeared stating the memory card is encrypted to a different device! I am totally devastated as there are pictures of my father who has passed away and other images that they are the only copies I have, I know now I should have unencrypted the memory card before the factory reset. I have spoken to Samsung directly so say there is nothing that can be done.
does anyone know of a way I can get round this I would be so very grateful!
Thanks in advanced
Stu
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello, have an experience that my samsung device were dead and my sd card still encrypted.
Firstly, you have to backup entire data on your sd card just in case.
And then, format your sd card using another device (maybe your another android).
Last, put your sd card to windows device and recover all data with DiskDigger software.
It's work on my sd card, give it a try.. Dont forget to backup all data

Question Factory Reset my Samsung S23 ultra with no backups...can I recover photos?

So I was using my S23 ultra for camera and video purposes. It had no sim card.
Today i decided to get a sim card for it and use it as a phone finally.
Installing the sim card, It factory reset the phone, I wasnt aware it would do this...and it walked me through the setup the phone stuff.
I dont know if there is any way i can still recover all my pics and videos....the rest of stuff i can live without.
I did find an app called Droidkit which sounded promising but it was unable to ROOT the phone to do a deep scan....i assume cause the S23 is a Canada version.
Which basically brought me here to see if there was a way to ROOT this phone or if there was any other way to try to recover my photos and videos.
I hadnt done any type of backup nor used google photos etc.
I had planned to back everything up when i got home before installing the sim card, but when i bought it, the girl insisted she had to install it herself and make sure it was activated.
anyways, any help is appreciated, thanks!
I have never seen factory reset delete user data on internal simcard.
On samsung phones.
(unless specificaly requested to do so from recovery)
open file manager and browse around , very good chance your stuff is still there.
if it was really reformatted (almost always a quick format) which can allow file recovery,
(stop using phone as much as possible so not to overwrite the the sectors on internal sd)
Back up and restore data or files on your Galaxy device
When you back up and restore content using Samsung Cloud, you'll be able to save important files, download deleted files, and sync data on other devices.
www.samsung.com
Samsung Internal Memory Recovery | Samsung Files Recovery
I accidentally deleted my data on my Samsung, is there any way to recover deleted files on Samsung Galaxy? This post makes Samsung internal memory recovery easy in three trouble-free ways.
www.coolmuster.com
4 Ways of Samsung Internal Memory Recovery [with Pics]
I accidentally deleted my data on my Samsung. How to perform Samsung internal memory recovery? This page tells you 4 ways to recover deleted files from phone memory on Samsung Galaxy S21/S20/S10/S9.
www.mobikin.com
Samsung SD Card Recovery: Recover Files From a Samsung SD Card/Samsung Phone
Recover files from your Samsung SD card - or any SD card - and Samsung phone using our easy-to-follow guides (with screenshots).
www.handyrecovery.com
if proficient with android development or linux administration
look in to dumping the filesystems trough usb/adb/recovery and running
file system recovery on dumped images.
PS: samsung phones also have their own backup system besides google images,
if you even registered for a samsung acount on phone (look in to that also)
dandudikof said:
I have never seen factory reset delete user data on internal simcard.
On samsung phones.
(unless specificaly requested to do so from recovery)
open file manager and browse around , very good chance your stuff is still there.
if it was really reformatted (almost always a quick format) which can allow file recovery,
(stop using phone as much as possible so not to overwrite the the sectors on internal sd)
Back up and restore data or files on your Galaxy device
When you back up and restore content using Samsung Cloud, you'll be able to save important files, download deleted files, and sync data on other devices.
www.samsung.com
Samsung Internal Memory Recovery | Samsung Files Recovery
I accidentally deleted my data on my Samsung, is there any way to recover deleted files on Samsung Galaxy? This post makes Samsung internal memory recovery easy in three trouble-free ways.
www.coolmuster.com
4 Ways of Samsung Internal Memory Recovery [with Pics]
I accidentally deleted my data on my Samsung. How to perform Samsung internal memory recovery? This page tells you 4 ways to recover deleted files from phone memory on Samsung Galaxy S21/S20/S10/S9.
www.mobikin.com
Samsung SD Card Recovery: Recover Files From a Samsung SD Card/Samsung Phone
Recover files from your Samsung SD card - or any SD card - and Samsung phone using our easy-to-follow guides (with screenshots).
www.handyrecovery.com
if proficient with android development or linux administration
look in to dumping the filesystems trough usb/adb/recovery and running
file system recovery on dumped images.
PS: samsung phones also have their own backup system besides google images,
if you even registered for a samsung acount on phone (look in to that also)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks
im new to android and dont know linux.
i will try your other suggestions and see how i get on there.
appreciated!
First time ever i heard that when installing simcard phone goes to factory reset... I change them a lot also esim and no issue like factory reset...
You can try Ontrack to recover files.
B0B_SACAMAN0 said:
So I was using my S23 ultra for camera and video purposes. It had no sim card.
Today i decided to get a sim card for it and use it as a phone finally.
Installing the sim card, It factory reset the phone, I wasnt aware it would do this...and it walked me through the setup the phone stuff.
I dont know if there is any way i can still recover all my pics and videos....the rest of stuff i can live without.
I did find an app called Droidkit which sounded promising but it was unable to ROOT the phone to do a deep scan....i assume cause the S23 is a Canada version.
Which basically brought me here to see if there was a way to ROOT this phone or if there was any other way to try to recover my photos and videos.
I hadnt done any type of backup nor used google photos etc.
I had planned to back everything up when i got home before installing the sim card, but when i bought it, the girl insisted she had to install it herself and make sure it was activated.
anyways, any help is appreciated, thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When Samsung had an sdcard you were able to store images and videos on your sdcard so that when you did a FDR you didn't lose your images or videos. Sorry to say that US and Canadian S23 Ultra's can't be bootloader unlocked at this time so no root for now. You can go to settings>Backup and Restore and see if by chance they were backed up, mine are backed up every so often automatically.
B0B_SACAMAN0 said:
So I was using my S23 ultra for camera and video purposes. It had no sim card.
Today i decided to get a sim card for it and use it as a phone finally.
Installing the sim card, It factory reset the phone, I wasnt aware it would do this...and it walked me through the setup the phone stuff.
I dont know if there is any way i can still recover all my pics and videos....the rest of stuff i can live without.
I did find an app called Droidkit which sounded promising but it was unable to ROOT the phone to do a deep scan....i assume cause the S23 is a Canada version.
Which basically brought me here to see if there was a way to ROOT this phone or if there was any other way to try to recover my photos and videos.
I hadnt done any type of backup nor used google photos etc.
I had planned to back everything up when i got home before installing the sim card, but when i bought it, the girl insisted she had to install it herself and make sure it was activated.
anyways, any help is appreciated, thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only possible way is by physically removing emmc and then recovering using UFI tool box.
I don't recommend doing it for yourself as it has to be performed by trained professional.
thanks for all the replies.
didnt have any luck....if the phone was rootable, its possible i could have recovered some i guess.
fortunately it was only a couple months i had the phone....but i still took hundreds of pics n vids in that short time.
lesson learned...backup my shizzle.
i managed to salvage a few bits from messenger of stuff i had sent people.
appreciated.
did you use the file browser on the phone to check standard locations
(not the gallery browser, but actual file browser)
of the internal sd card
/sdcard/ (DCMI,Movies,Pictures)
even storage manager under settings should differentiate between
internal and external sd cards , even if external was formated to be used as internal.
(browse that and see how much space is used up by various things in internal-sd)
as i and others think, that you are just looking at external sd card only for some reason.
and internal sd should still be there with original content , unless purposefully erased
( factory reset should leave that allone )

Categories

Resources