iPhone 13 Pro Max Lost 545gb worth of data today

[Jumpthesnark]

545 GB of data and it's not backed up? As others have noted, this isn't Apple's fault. Apple provides its customers with ways to back up their data, several not requiring a "stupid subscription." Backups are even part of the process of updating iOS. OP would have to manually turn off photo backups in order for their photos to not be saved somewhere else. And the OP states that it's two years' worth of data, including a "photo shoot" that was somehow not backed up.

If this post is legit, then I can only commiserate. Data loss sucks. But as others have mentioned, we have all seen newbie posts from people who come in and make outrageous claims or blame Apple for the problems that they have caused themselves, then disappear without another word. So we take these posts with a really big grain of salt and move on.

I hate to be that guy, but here goes: I don't believe the post for its unspecific and unsupported claims, including:

"Was a glitch in the system and I seen other posts from others forums with the same thing happening to them.... I believe apple does this on purpose... I even had customers with the same problem through the years and it seems apple hasn't gotten it right yet... Samsung will always be better at preserving data. And before you say I might have made a mistake. I didn't."

Okay, those claims are pretty nutso and some are conspiratorial. No links to those posts from other forums. No mention of reaching out to Apple support for help. The entire description of what happened is wildly unspecific and lacks detail. So sorry, but I'm not a believer in this tale.

If it did happen, then my apologies for being suspicious. Lesson learned for the OP, though. They should have made backups if their data was that valuable and irreplaceable.

The cliché in the photography community is "if your data doesn't exist in 3 different places, it doesn't exist." Use the tools - free and paid - that Apple provides to protect your data in case your hardware fails.

 

[gigapocket1]

Also, the erase data after 10 failed attempts isn't turned on by default... That's a user turn on feature...


Also, if this has happened to customers in the past.. Then you are aware that it could happen? and did nothing to make sure your data is safe?

 

[eyoungren]

OP would have to manually turn off photo backups in order for their photos to not be saved somewhere else.

This assumes that OP even turned it on in the first place. OP seems to be allergic to subscriptions, so MY assumption is that OP never even created an AppleID. Which would mean backups were never turned on.

I guess we both are assuming here.

 

[KENESS]

I believe apple does this on purpose and this is unacceptable for an nearly $2000 phone.

That's absurd.

 

[ForkHandles]

OP, if this genuinely happened, then commiserations. It's a ****** situation to deal with.

However, by now, surely every reasonably computer literate person has heard of the importance of doing backups.
This is 101 level.

Learn from this and try to move on.

I have iCloud as well as Google Drive with a hard drive computer based backup.

My photos are especially important to me. I hate to think of losing them… it is an archive of my life with the earliest photos dating back to 1963… (scanned obviously!)
Every month I take the time to drag my Apple Photos folder to two different back up drives. If **** hits the fan I lose 30 days worth of pics. *shrug* I sleep better at night.

Sorry for your loss, but so we learn.


Seriously? I am no Apple fanboy, but this smells to me like ********.
If you are just here to stir ****… then well, get a life.


Ah…OK.

Agree!

OP has to own a 1TB phone to lose that much data, too stingy to pay for iCloud , could not possibly have created 545GB of data in the time since the iPhone 13 came out.
Data must have been migrated onto phone for a separate source. Therefore it’s not lost it’s elsewhere.

 

[Applɘ Aꙅylum]

I went to change my passcode on my phone and there was some glitch I put in my birthday cause it's the same code I use on all my phones. At first it said the passwords didn't match but then it went through after the code verification . After that I couldn't log in with my passcode. Was a glitch in the system and I seen other posts from others forums with the same thing happening to them. All of my anniversary pictures and photo shoot gone. Two years worth of data destroyed. And I won't be buying some stupid subscription. I believe apple does this on purpose and this is unacceptable for an nearly $2000 phone. I won't let it happen again. I even had customers with the same problem through the years and it seems apple hasn't gotten it right yet. It will be a lesson to always backup data on an computer and external storage device at the end of every month. Won't waste money on a subscription. Samsung will always be better at preserving data. And before you say I might have made a mistake. I didn't. I was really surprised this happened to me. Apple should make it that you can recover your days through other means instead of just deleting the whole freaking phone. It's stupid.

545gb gone on a nearly $2k iPhone?

My guess is that your iPhone costs $1,800.

Ever try iCloud and buy 2tb for only $10 monthly?

Ok, let's do the math...

$10 x 12 months = $120.

$1,800 divided by $120 is 15.

That's FIFTEEN years!

Yet you could afford a iPhone but NOT iCloud?

 

[MrMojo1]

So you never bothered to back up to iCloud or to the PC/Mac any time at all?
And you’re complaining that it’s Apple’s fault that you didn’t do so when that’s your responsibility?
Sorry, backing up your information is on you not Apple.

Agree with other commenters about your matter about not making backups.

 

[eyoungren]

545gb gone on a nearly $2k iPhone?

My guess is that your iPhone costs $1,800.

Ever try iCloud and buy 2tb for only $10 monthly?

Ok, let's do the math...

$10 x 12 months = $120.

$1,800 divided by $120 is 15.

That's FIFTEEN years!

Yet you could afford a iPhone but NOT iCloud?

I don't believe it's about affordability. OP stated this:

Won't waste money on a subscription.

If OP could not afford it the statement might have been something along the lines of "I won't waste money I don't have" or some such. So then, I think it's more about OP being obstinate. No idea why though. But considering the tone OP has taken (It's Apple's fault! Not mine!) I'm pretty sure OP just didn't want to get a sub.

 

[v0lume4]

Since I see some fellow data hoarders in here, would you guys lend some advice?

I have all my data backed up to an external hard drive. I also manually mirror this data to Dropbox. I’ve done it this way for years.

I’d like to switch to a set-it-and-forget-it setup with a NAS. I’ve considered repurposing an old machine with unRaid, but also have considered a Synology NAS with hot-swappable bays. What do you guys recommend? What do you use for your NAS?

 

[JamesMay82]

I’d argue that the general population and including young people are probably quite unaware of backing up their devices.

We are a bunch of nerds who understand but most of my friends aren’t.