Lately we have been seeing a lot of malicious scam data recovery companies.

This is how the scam works.

1. They advertise heavy on Google. If you see the word “Sponsored” they are paying at least $25/click to Google to be in that position.

2. They have many mail forwarding places around the country. Use Google Street View and make sure you see where your are shipping your drive. If you see a UPS Store, Walgreen or a building without any sign outside you know it is fake. A Regus virtual office never has a sign outside. Even a little family owned pizza shop has a sign outside. Are they telling you they are such a big company and their name is nowhere to be found outside?

3. You ship them your drive and the mail forwarding company over night ships your drive out of the USA.

4. Now they have your data and they know you will pay thousands of dollars to get it back.

5. If the recovery is easy they will recover the data to their server and send you a directory listing and quote which normally exceeds $3,000.

6. If you request your drive back they will demagnetize and send it back only if you pay a $500 evaluation fee.

7. If you send other real Data Recovery Companies nobody will be able to recover it.

8. Either you pay the scam company what they are asking or you get no data.

9. Even if you do not pay them they have all your personal data and they will find other means to get money out of you.

10. You can’t report them to law enforcement because they are located in a country with no extradition treaty with USA.

TO DO DATA RECOVERY YOU MUST HAVE ALL YOUR EQUIPMENT, PARTS AND ENGINEERS IN ONE BUILDING!

IF YOU SEE MANY LOCATIONS THEY ARE SCAMMERS!!!!!