I need some help here as the tech stores where i am are useless. I’ve accidentally dropped my passport on my metal desk and now it won’t work properly (hardware damage). After plugging and entering my password, my entire Desktop begins to freeze or move very slowly and the file volume won’t even open or be recognized anymore. I’ve tried using Stellar Data Recovery to see if I can recover the files I had on my passport but ended up making things worse. It seems like all it did was remove the data from the CD partition and gave it 0 MB volume. Now I can’t do anything with the drive.
Is there still hope to recover the data off the drive or is it just gone forever?
I once knew of a place in Colorado (I think) that recovers drives. Sorry, I don’t remember the name of the place. Do a search, but be prepared to spend more than $500.
Your problem is why backing up is a good idea.
I’m sorry to hear about your situation with the damaged passport and the difficulties you’ve encountered in trying to recover your data. While I’m not able to provide a definitive answer without physically examining the drive, I can offer some suggestions that may help you recover your data or at least improve your chances.
Firstly, it’s important to understand that dropping a passport or any storage device on a hard surface can cause physical damage to the internal components, such as the disk or connectors. In some cases, this can lead to data loss or make the drive inaccessible. However, it’s not always a guarantee that the data is irretrievable.
Here are a few steps you can try to recover your data:
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Stop using the damaged drive: Continued use of the drive can potentially worsen the damage and make data recovery more difficult. It’s crucial to avoid any further write operations to the drive to prevent data overwriting.
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Consult a professional data recovery service: Given the physical damage and the unsuccessful attempts you’ve made so far, it may be worth seeking assistance from a professional data recovery service. These experts have specialized tools and expertise to recover data from physically damaged drives. They can disassemble the drive and attempt to retrieve the data directly from the internal components.
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Consider software recovery tools: While you mentioned that Stellar Data Recovery didn’t work as expected, However, keep in mind that these tools may not be effective if the drive has suffered significant physical damage. For physical damage you need to send hard drive to lab or stores. Stellar® Data Recovery Lab-Services
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Try connecting the drive to another computer: Sometimes, a different computer or USB port can make a difference. Connect the damaged drive to another computer and see if it is recognized and accessible. If it is, immediately attempt to copy your important files to a different storage device.
Remember, these suggestions are not guaranteed to work in every case. Physical damage to a storage device can be challenging to overcome, and professional assistance might be your best option. It’s important to weigh the value of the data against the potential cost and effort involved in the recovery process.
In the future, it’s advisable to maintain regular backups of important data to minimize the impact of such incidents. This way, even if a storage device becomes damaged, you can still retrieve your files from a backup source.
I hope you find a solution and manage to recover your important data. Good luck!
thanks for your reply. I forgot to mention that I did backup some of the files to another drive that’s non-western digital but kept majority of my data on wd my passport - I guess it is my fault for not regularly backing up my data to another back drive 
(lesson learnt). Unfortunately, It does seem like I’ll have to take it to a paid professional to open it up at this point. I did so some research where I could send the drive but all locations are out of state and I’m VERY wary of sending a drive that has over 1TB of PII over the mail across the states, which is why I tried recovering it myself first.
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