Can you retrieve text messages 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.
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How far back can text messages be retrieved?

Most newer Android devices will let you view all your text messages but older models may limit you to viewing just the last 30 days' worth of messages. What is this? In some instances, you can delete messages as old as 3 months. In some other carriers, you can go beyond 6 months.
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How can I retrieve older text messages?

Download the Android Data Recovery app on your PC.
...
How to restore deleted messages on Android
  1. Open Google Drive on your phone.
  2. Open the menu by clicking on the three lines button at the top left corner.
  3. Now, select 'Backups'.
  4. Check if your data has been backed up.
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Can you recover texts from years ago iPhone?

iPhone Message Tips & Issues

If you're searching old text messages that were deleted, and no backup found, you can download PhoneRescue for iOS to find those old messages. And it provides you the way to sort by date. “I have a conversation that likely has tens of thousands of messages sent over the past year.
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Can text messages be retrieved from old phone?

Many cell phone carriers generally store all the information shared and stored on your device like the text messages, call logs, and other data. You can call the customer care of your mobile carrier and ask them if they can help you in any way to retrieve the messages from your old phone.
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How to Recover Deleted Text Messages on iPhone: 5 Ways (2021)



How long are texts saved?

The text messages are stored in both locations. 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. Verizon holds texts for up to five days and Virgin Mobile keeps them for 90 days.
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Where do deleted texts 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.
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How do I see messages from years ago on my iPhone?

How to See Old Messages on an iPhone With the Hidden Scroll
  1. Open the Messages app in iOS and select the conversation you want to view.
  2. Tap once near the clock (or on either side of the camera notch) at the top of your iPhone or iPad screen.
  3. A progress indicator appears as the app scrolls up a few messages at a time.
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How long do iPhone keep text messages?

By default, the iPhone keeps all messages forever (or until you manually delete them). If you prefer, tap "30 Days" or '1 Year." If you do, the iPhone will automatically discard your messages after the selected time period.
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How do I find older texts on my iPhone?

To find old iMessages:
  1. Open Messages. ...
  2. Drag your finger downwards across the middle of your screen to reveal a search bar. ...
  3. Tap the Search Bar and type in keywords from the message, or the name of someone in the conversation. ...
  4. Tap Search. ...
  5. Select the message you were looking for to go to the conversation.
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Where is my text message history?

How to Get Text Message History From Phone
  • Look for the menu icon on your cell phone screen. ...
  • Go into the menu section of your cell phone. ...
  • Look for the icon and word "Messaging" within your menu. ...
  • Look for the words "Inbox" and "Outbox" or "Sent" and "Received" in your Messaging section.
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Are text messages stored anywhere?

When you receive and send text messages, they're sent through -- and saved by -- your service provider's data network. Data is then maintained on the phone. Deleting these messages clears them from the visible display, but a small piece of data is still stored temporarily in the device's system memory.
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Can police look up old text messages?

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.
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How long does text messages stay in icloud?

Messages are currently stored for up to 30 days.
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Are old text messages saved in iCloud?

Any messages currently stored in iCloud are now accessible on your Mac, and any new messages you receive on your Mac will be stored in iCloud. To see Messages stored in iCloud, open the Messages app.
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Does iMessage delete After years?

In “Settings,” tap “Messages.” In “Messages,” scroll down and tap “Keep Messages.” By default, Messages is set to keep your SMS text messages and iMessages forever. Tap either “30 Days” or “1 Year” depending on how long you'd like to keep your old messages.
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Are deleted texts gone forever?

“When the messages are deleted, they are not really erased at once, but the space where they are stored is marked as free to restore new data,” Scott explains.
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How far back can I get phone records?

T-Mobile holds call records between seven and 10 years, spokesman Viet Nguyen says. MetroPCS maintains separate records and keeps them two years. Sprint holds call logs 18 months, spokeswoman Stephanie Vinge Walsh says. U.S. Cellular holds records one year, according to spokeswoman Katie Frey.
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Are text messages stored in the cloud?

How Can I Backup My Messages? The easiest way to make backups of text messages is to use Android's integration of Google Drive, which will let you automatically save any texts to the cloud. However, you can also use third-party services like IDrive to save your data to the cloud.
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Can the FBI see my texts?

A recently discovered FBI training document shows that US law enforcement can gain limited access to the content of encrypted messages from secure messaging services like iMessage, Line, and WhatsApp, but not to messages sent via Signal, Telegram, Threema, Viber, WeChat, or Wickr.
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Can police download deleted messages?

Officers can use a machine to extract all kinds of information, including location data, deleted pictures and encrypted messages. Opposition groups warn there is 'no limit on the volume of data' police can obtain, and it could happen even if charges are never bought.
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Where are old texts stored?

In general, Android SMS are stored in a database in the data folder located in the internal memory of the Android phone.
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Can you get transcripts of text messages?

Request Text Transcripts

You can contact your phone company to try to obtain detailed logs of the texts you've exchanged. In some cases, such as when multiple people use the same phone, you may need a court order to access the information for privacy reasons.
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Why do old text messages disappear?

Text messages can disappear from your Android device when you delete them accidentally, restart the device the wrong way, use outdated firmware, activate the delete option for old messages, or upgrade errors and software bugs.
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