Most of the time, when you delete a file, it is not actually erased from existence immediately, since recently discovered A man whose wife found illicit text messages he had been sending (and which he believed he had deleted on his iPhone). The man is now suing Apple.
Aside from marital infidelity, the safety net you put in place for deleted files can help you recover data you've mistakenly deleted; however, it can also leave your data exposed to other people (if you're selling a device, for example). It's important to know where your deleted files are and how to recover or permanently erase them.
Checking sync status
By default, all Apple devices that you're signed in to with your Apple ID should sync files through iCloud, but it's worth double-checking—otherwise you may leave behind files you thought you'd deleted.
- Open Settingsthen tap your name at the top and then iCloud.
- Low Saved to iCloudYou should see entries for Photos, iCloud Drive, iCloud Mail, and the other apps that use iCloud (which are probably most of the ones you have installed).
- Select See everything to get a list of all your apps and whether they are synced.
- To ensure that files are deleted across the board, keep sync turned on.
- Open System settings Through the Apple menu, then your name > iCloud.
- As on mobile, the Photos and iCloud Drive entries must be activated. You can find other apps (such as Messages, Contacts, Calendar, and Safari) by clicking Show more applications either Show everything (depending on your version of macOS).
- Tap on the iCloud Drive entry to see if you're syncing your desktop and documents folders, and to see which apps iCloud is and isn't syncing from your Mac.
Delete files on iOS and iPadOS
Any file you delete from your iPhone or iPad goes to the Recently Deleted folder for 30 days before you permanently delete them. To find the folder, open the Files app and tap Browse and Recently deleted.
- Touch and hold any item to bring up the options. Delete now (delete it forever) and Recover (restore it to its previous place).
- To select multiple files, tap the three dots (top right), then Select. When making your choice, Recover and Delete The options appear below.
If you've deleted a photo or video through the Photos app, it will have its own separate Recently Deleted folder, although the same 30-day period applies.
- Open Photos on your iPhone or iPad, then scroll down and tap Utilities > Recently deleted (iOS) or simply Recently deleted from the left navigation panel (iPadOS).
- Tap any photo or video to bring up options to Recover the file (return it to where it was) or Delete the file (delete it permanently).
- To select multiple items, tap the Select button (top right), then tap the three dots in the bottom right corner to bring up the Recover and Delete options.
If you sync everything through iCloud, all of these changes will also apply to your other devices, including permanent deletions and file recoveries.
Delete files on macOS
When you delete a file on your Mac, it goes to the Trash folder.
- You can open the Trash from the dock or from the Finder (select Go > Go to folderthen search for “trash”).
- If you prefer to permanently delete a file the first time, highlight the file or files in the Finder, use the Option+Cmd+Delete keyboard shortcut and confirm your choice when the dialog box appears.
Files generally remain in the Trash until you manually empty them.
- To delete one or more files in Finder, Ctrl+click about them and choose Delete immediately.
- To empty everything from the Trash at once, click Empty (top right).
- You can also click and hold (or right-click) the Trash icon in the dock and then select Empty Trash.
If you prefer, you can have macOS automatically clean up files after they've been in the Trash for a month.
- Open the Discoverer menu and select Settings.
- Low AdvancedCheck the Delete items from Trash after 30 days.
Just like on iPhones and iPads, the Photos app has its own Trash folder, called Recently Deleted. Deleted photos and videos remain there for 30 days before being completely erased.
- From the macOS Photos app, click Recently deleted on the left. (Note: If you don't have any recently deleted photos, you won't see the folder.)
- Choose Delete all to permanently delete everything in the folder.
- To recover or delete individual files, select them as necessary and the Recover and Delete The buttons will be activated in the upper right corner.
Again, all of these changes will sync to other devices via iCloud, if you've enabled it. The only exceptions would be changes to files in folders on your Mac that iCloud doesn't cover (go back to the instructions in the first section to check).
How to find deleted files and apps in iCloud
If you go to iCloud on the webYou won't find anything different than what you can already see on your iPhone, iPad or Mac in terms of deleted files. However, you may find it easier to check them from here.
- Click Drive > Recently deleted to see files that have recently been deleted across all your devices, as well as how much time is left before they are permanently deleted. Use the Recover and Delete buttons below to restore or delete them.
- Click Photos and then Recently deleted to view photos and videos that have been deleted in the last 30 days. Here the Recover and Delete The buttons are in the upper right corner.
Finally, keep in mind that other apps in the Apple ecosystem have their own recently deleted items folders, usually with the same 30-day time limit. Apple Mail and Apple Notes, for example, have their own trash folders where you can view deleted items, restore them, or erase them forever.
