There’s nothing worse than losing an important text message to the technological blackhole. Whether you’ve accidentally deleted a text, there’s a technical glitch, or you’ve dropped your phone in the sink — the impact on operations and client relationships can be significant.
If you’ve deleted a text, not all is not lost. Even if it seems like it.
In this blog post, we’ll show you the five ways you can recover deleted text messages so you can stress less.
- Why is secure SMS history important?
- How to recover deleted texts on iPhone
- How to recover deleted texts on Android
- How to retrieve texts with ClickSend
- Talk to your carrier to retrieve SMS
- Use data recovery software
Ready to recover? Read on.
Why is secure SMS history important?
Losing text messages can have significant consequences for a business, from missed opportunities to damaged customer relationships. Texts often contain critical information, such as customer inquiries, order confirmations, and appointment reminders.
When these messages are lost, it can lead to miscommunication, delayed responses, and even lost sales. Moreover, the loss of important customer interactions can harm trust and credibility, making your business appear unreliable. In a competitive market, where timely and clear communication is key, losing texts can set back customer satisfaction and impact your bottom line.
1. How to recover deleted texts on iPhone
Here’s some good news. If you’ve accidentally deleted a message, there’s a good chance it can be recovered thanks to automatic backups. Your phone should be backing up your data to iCloud and it’s easy to check what backups are available. Just follow the steps below.
Note: The below method will only work if you haven’t disabled automatic backups on your iPhone.
How to check and restore from an iCloud Backup:
- Open Settings and tap your profile picture at the top.
- Navigate to iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups and check the dates of the available backups.
- If you find a backup that could contain the deleted messages, you’ll need to perform a factory reset on your phone to restore from this backup.
Hot tip: we know that factory resets can send a shudder down the spine. Make sure you read all the steps to the end to make sure you don’t lose any important data.
Steps to restore from an iCloud Backup:
- Go to Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings. This process will wipe your phone’s current data, so ensure that anything important is backed up separately.
- After the reset, your iPhone will restart, and you’ll go through the setup process. When prompted, select the option to Restore from iCloud Backup.
- Choose the backup that you identified earlier, and once the process is complete, your messages should be restored along with the rest of your data.
Remember, this process can restore your deleted texts. However it will also overwrite any changes made since the last backup, so proceed with caution.
Another method for iPhone users
If you don’t have a recent iCloud backup, you might still be able to recover your texts using iTunes (or Finder on macOS Catalina 10.15 or later).
Simply connect your iPhone to your computer, open iTunes or Finder, and check for available backups. If you find a backup that predates the deletion, you can restore your phone from this backup.
2. How to recover deleted texts on Android
Android users you’re covered too. You can also recover deleted text messages, however you will need to have automatic backups to Google Drive enabled.
The process may be slightly different depending on your device and Android version. Below is the most common way to restore a backup from a Google Drive.
How to check and restore from a Google Drive backup:
- Go to Settings > Cloud and accounts > Backup and restore.
- Ensure that your Google Drive account is correctly set up for backups.
- If a suitable backup exists, you’ll need to perform a factory reset on your device to restore from it.
Steps to restore from a Google Drive backup:
- Go to Settings > General management > Reset (or Settings > Privacy on older versions).
- Perform a factory reset. During the setup process, log into the Google account that was used for the backup and select the Restore from backup option.
- Choose the device from the list, and once the process is complete, your texts and other data should be restored.
Hot tip: Be careful with MMS messages. Unlike iPhone backups, Google Drive backups do not include MMS messages unless you have a subscription that covers them.
3. How to retrieve texts with ClickSend
What if there was a secure service that not only sent your text messages, but stored them too? So, if you delete a text from your phone — there’s always a backup copy on hand.
SMS service providers like ClickSend are the antidote to SMS stress. With ClickSend’s robust SMS platform your messages are securely stored and easily accessible, even if they’ve been deleted from your device. Here’s how:
- Secure storage: ClickSend stores your messages on secure servers, so they’re safe even if your phone is lost or damaged.
- Easy access: Access your messages anytime through the web or mobile app, where you can view and download them as needed.
- No backups needed: You don’t have to worry about managing backups or performing factory resets. Your messages are always available at your fingertips and easily searched via SMS Messenger.
Along with secure storage, ClickSend’s platform also offers advanced features like automated message forwarding and integration with your existing business software. It’s a simple way to make sure your texts are always stored somewhere safe and your communication channels are always open for business.
Obviously, you need to have an account with ClickSend before you lose a text message. You can sign up for a 14-day trial, no credit card needed.
4. Talk to your carrier to retrieve SMS
If you can’t restore a backup via your device and you don’t have an account with an SMS platform — you may have luck if you contact your phone company (also called a phone carrier. Some carriers store text message logs and might be able to retrieve them for you. However, this method can be time-consuming, often requiring identity verification and potentially incurring fees. Not all carriers store messages, and retrieval might require legal authorisation, depending on your location.
But, if it’s a very important message, the hard work might be worth it.
5. Use data recovery software
This is a last resort and we can’t promise that it will bring your text messages back from the abyss. While these tools aren’t always 100% effective, they can sometimes recover deleted messages from your device’s memory.
Steps to use data recovery software:
- Choose a reputable data recovery tool.
- Install the software on your device and follow the instructions to scan for recoverable messages.
- Select the messages you wish to restore and complete the recovery process.
Keep in mind that the success of data recovery software decreases the longer you wait, so it’s best to act quickly.
How to prevent losing text messages in the future
As they say, prevention really is the best cure. If you’ve lost an important message, you’ll know just how disruptive it can be. Luckily, there are three simple safeguards that you can put in place to make sure that you never have to recover a lost text message again.
- Keep automatic backups on: Make sure your device is regularly backed up to the cloud, whether through iCloud, Google Drive, or another service.
- Take screenshots for VIP texts: For important messages, consider taking screenshots. While this won’t save entire conversations, it’s a quick way to preserve key information like addresses or appointment times.
- Use ClickSend: Rely on ClickSend’s secure platform to store and manage your business communications. With ClickSend, your messages are always backed up, secure, and easily accessible.
Keep your SMS safe and secure
Losing important text messages doesn’t have to be a nightmare. With the right tools and strategies, you can recover deleted messages and keep your business communications running smoothly. Whether you’re using iPhone, Android, or ClickSend’s SMS platform, there are solutions available to help you retrieve your lost texts and stop future mishaps.
Try ClickSend for yourself, sign up for a 14-day trial, no credit card needed.