How long do cell companies keep text messages?

Some phone companies also keep records of sent text messages. They sit on the company's server for anywhere from three days to three months, depending on the company's policy.


Does cell phone company keep record text messages?

Your provider or "carrier" keeps records of your cellphone use, including calls and text messages, and even pictures sent from your phone. Almost all cellphone carriers give detailed information about a phone's use in billing statements sent to the owner.

How far back can text messages be retrieved?

When you delete a text message on your Samsung phone, the Messages app sends it to Recycle bin for 30 days.


How far back can text messages be subpoenaed Verizon?

Verizon Messages

Any usage within the 10 day time frame can be subpoenaed. Re: How long does Verizon store text messages? Verizon keeps text messages on file for 10 days or 240 hours. Once this period has occured the messages are deleted from our system and are no longer available.

How long does Verizon keep text messages 2022?

Verizon Messages stores the last 90 days of messages for you.


Cell Companies Keep Texts, Private Data



How far back can Verizon retrieve deleted text messages?

Please keep in mind; the text message content is stored on our server for 3-5 days before being deleted. Once it is deleted, it cannot be retrieved. If this information is needed for litigation purposes, please have your attorney contact us directly at 1-800-922-0204.

Are text messages deleted forever?

When you delete a piece of data from your device — a photo, video, text or document — it doesn't vanish. Instead, your device labels that space as available to be overwritten by new information.

How long does AT&T keep text messages?

Messages older than 90 days will be deleted from Your Messages cloud storage.


Can your phone company retrieve deleted text messages?

Carriers have an extensive database to keep messages even after it has been deleted. Hence, you can reach out to your carrier to retrieve deleted text messages from another phone for free. Some carriers do not give direct access to sleeted text messages.

Can you get text transcripts?

Federal law prevents companies from producing these documents without a court order or subpoena. Text message records must be obtained from a party's cell phone provider. An attorney can obtain a court order or subpoena to get the records directly from the service provider.

Can I recover texts from years ago?

If you are currently using a wireless backup service, check when the last backup was made. If the most recent backup was made before you accidentally deleted the texts, you can restore that backup to your phone and the text messages will be restored to your phone as well.


How long do cell phone companies keep records?

Here's How Long Your Wireless Carrier Holds on to Your Location Data. AT&T keeps cell-site location information for up to five years; Verizon drops it after one.

Can police read text messages that have been deleted?

Deleted text messages are usually retrievable from a phone, but before beginning the process, law enforcement officers would need to obtain a court order. Once obtained, officers can use mobile device forensic tools (MDFTs) to extract any data from a device, including emails, texts, images and location data.

How far back do phone companies save text messages?

All of the providers retained records of the date and time of the text message and the parties to the message for time periods ranging from sixty days to seven years. However, the majority of cellular service providers do not save the content of text messages at all.


How long does Verizon keep text message records?

Verizon will typically keep these records for 18 months before archiving them. When I request these records pursuant to a subpoena I typically receive them from the cellular service provider within a few weeks on a CD which can be downloaded or printed.

How do I permanently delete text messages so they can t be recovered?

Long-press the message thread you'd like to remove. It will highlight with a checkmark. Tap on the trash can icon at the bottom and confirm.

Can AT&T pull up old text messages?

Yes, you can retrieve deleted messages for up to 48 hours with the telephone interface. Just choose Erased Messages from the main menu. You can also retrieve deleted messages from your email Trash folder at www.um.att.com for up to 48 hours.


Can AT&T give you copies of text messages?

There is no additional per-message charge for message backup. For customers that opt into the service, all sent or received messages are automatically copied to the AT&T cloud for no additional fee.

Will AT&T give me deleted text messages?

If you delete messages from your device, they'll also be deleted from the cloud. You can't recover deleted messages using AT&T Messages Backup & Sync.

How does the FBI find deleted text messages?

So, can police recover deleted pictures, texts, and files from a phone? The answer is yes—by using special tools, they can find data that hasn't been overwritten yet. However, by using encryption methods, you can ensure your data is kept private, even after deletion.


Are all text messages saved somewhere?

In fact, all text messages are saved on Android phones by default. Therefore, if you only have a SIM card, you cannot see the text messages saved on the phone. If you want to save them on the SIM card or SD card, you have to manually move them to the SIM card one by one yourself.

Can Verizon retrieve text messages from 3 years ago?

Verizon text messages history can be seen through the online website or through the app provided by the mobile carrier service provider. Actual text messages can be seen for only the last 5 days. A 12-month record of logs can also be seen without the conversations in it.

Can police get text messages from Verizon?

Content and Location Information

Under the law, law enforcement may seek communications or other content that a customer may store through our services, such as text messages or emails. Verizon only releases such stored content to law enforcement with a probable cause warrant.


Can I get a printout of text messages from Verizon?

Verizon Messages - Website - Save / Print Text Messages

From a web browser, sign in to My Verizon. Click the desired conversation (on the left) to view messages. You must be in conversation view to print.

Where does deleted text messages go?

The Android operating system stores text messages in the phone's memory, so if they're deleted, there's no way to retrieve them. You can, however, install a text message backup application from the Android market that allows you to restore any deleted text messages.