Gmail is the world’s most famous email platform and is managed by Google. It is so prominent that almost everyone has a Gmail account. It is a free email service, with more than 1.5 billion active users worldwide. Gmail offers two different options to access it – through the web browser or an official mobile application. It supports its email clients through the POP and IMAP protocols. Gmail was started in 2004. At that time, it provided a storage capacity of around 1 GB per user. However, it has now increased the storage capacity to 15 GB of data per user! You can receive emails up to 50Mb in size, and you can send emails up to 25Mb in size via Gmail. These emails can contain text, links, photos, emojis, files, and even signatures.
All photos sent and received through your Gmail account (or Google account) are stored in your own Google Photos. Google Photos is your own personal cloud storage where you can store all your photos. Apart from Gmail, you can also use Google Photos to back up photos from your Android device through your Google Account. In this way, you can safeguard your data in case of any possible technical glitch. However, if you accidentally delete photos from Google Photos, then you will lose them from your device as well. You may have even deleted photos on purpose and later changed your mind. You may be searching for a method to get back your deleted photos. In such cases, this article comes to your rescue. We have listed a few methods which are worth trying to recover your photos from Gmail or Google Photos.
Method 1 – Checking Your Google Photos Trash
Similar to emails on Gmail, Google Photos also has a special feature called Trash. When you delete a photo or video through Google Photos, it moves to the trash folder. This trash acts as a temporary rest house for your data. It stays in the trash for around 60 days before it gets permanently deleted. If you try to recover your photos within 60 days of deleting them, then it is probably staying in the trash and you can recover them easily. Here is how you recover photos from Google Photos Trash –
- Open the Google Photos Application from your Android device (Mobile Phone or Tablet).
- Click on Library at the bottom tab.
- It will take you to a new page. Click on Trash.
- All the photos and videos that you have deleted within the past 60 days appear here. Find the photo or video that you want to recover and long press on it.
- Click on the Restore option that appears now.
- Now the photo or video will be restored back to your Google Photos Library, your device gallery and any other album that it was previously present.
However, if it is more than 60 days since you deleted your media file, you won’t find it in the trash. It may be permanently deleted. At times, you may have even manually emptied the trash. In such cases, you cannot get back your deleted photos and videos by this method. Keep reading to find the other possible methods.
The same method can be used if you are using an iPhone or if you are using Google Photos from a PC.
Method 2 – Using Third-Party Recovery Tools
If you don’t find your deleted photos in the trash, it is probably deleted permanently. In such cases, you can use third-party recovery tools to get back your data. These tools can help you recover deleted documents from your device. However, there are a lot of recovery tools available in the market and it is difficult to identify valid, trustworthy ones. One such tool that works well and can be trusted is Stellar. It can help you get back all your deleted documents from your device. You can also try using EaseUs to get back all your permanently deleted files. EaseUS provides an Android data recovery software that helps you recover files for Android devices.
Method 3 – Contacting Google Support
If you cannot retrieve your data even after performing the methods mentioned above, your only option is to contact the Google Support team. Even after your data is permanently deleted from your drive, Google takes care of your data in most cases. However, there is no guarantee that you will get your back. Usually, you can get back your data from Google if you contact them within 21 days after it gets permanently deleted.
If you want to get back your data from Google, you need to make a request. If Google finds your reason to be genuine, it will initiate the data retrieval process. Here is how you can place a request –
- Visit the Google Drive Help page.
- Scroll down and choose Contact Us under the Need more help? section.
- Google will take you to a new page with a form. You need to fill up the form to submit your request.
- Under the Let’s get started tab, type in Missing or Deleted Files. Click Next Step.
- The next tab will contain a number of options. Choose your suitable issue. In this case, click on Permanently deleted my file.
- Google will list you a number of articles which you can refer. Read them out and follow the mentioned instructions.
- If nothing works for you, click on Next Step.
- In the next page, click on Email to send an email request to Google.
Once you send your email request, Google support will validate your request. If it finds your request to be genuine, a member of the Google support team will contact you. They will provide you with the next set of steps to carry out. Follow all the instructions exactly as mentioned. After you follow them, you can easily get back your files. Check your email from time to time for any update regarding your request.
In most cases, you can recover your files if you contact Google within 21 days since they got permanently deleted. However, it is not sure that you will get back your files, but it is worth trying.
