Secure folder disappeared

[Aylin7]

Hi there,

first of all: I am German so I apologize for any inconvenience regarding the language.

I have a Samsung S9 and got my Samsung s23+ a few days ago. When I installed it and got asked the question whether or not to use Smart Switch I was worried that it might not work or delete files from my old device, so I made sure to google whether or not that was the case. After reassuring myself that it only was COPIED and everything would stay the same on my old phone I did smart switch. Everything was fine until I realized 2 days ago that the secure folder didn´t transfer, but I then found out that everything that is password protected does not get copied. Okay, no worries.. It should all be on my Samsung S9, right? Cause everything only gets copied, nothing deleted. So I checked and my secure folder on my old phone was gone... 

So either smart switch was the cause for my secure folder disappearing or the fact that I accidentally clicked on "work profile" which I have never used before. But since clicking on it by accident it was impossible for me to reinstall the secure folder. Only when I deleted the work profile I could reinstall the secure folder only to realize everything in it was gone. I am deeply upset and I am hoping to somehow recover my important files.

Please help me.

Regards

Aylin 

[PaulM1]

Hi there, @Aylin7. Congratulations on your new S23+ - it's a brilliant smartphone, as I'm sure you're already discovering. 

I'm also sure that you'll be eager to get access to your Secure Folder data on your new phone as soon as possible. While it's very strange that you can't access these data on your old phone, it's worth underlining that the Secure Folder needs to be backed up and restored independently to your other data.

You can back up content and apps in Secure Folder and restore these later. 

Please let me know if you are able to retrieve, back up, and restore the data in your Secure Folder.

[Aylin7]

Thank you for your reply.

Unfortunately, I apparently did not back up the files in my secure folder, otherwise, I would not be having this issue. I trusted the process of smart switch and the statements of samsung claiming nothing would be deleted or changed on the old phone, which apart from the secure folder was not the case.

I would like to know  1. why the secure folder did delete itself and 2. if there is any chance of getting my valuable things back, which were in it. They surely still need to be saved somewhere on the device and don´t get deleted immediately when the secure folder is not visible on the device. Please let me know.

[JAMES4578]

@Aylin7   @PaulM1 Just to add that since January 2021 Samsung Folder cannot be backed up to the cloud, can restore backups which were taken prior to this point. Now need to take items out of secure Folder and back up  to a cloud service or back up locally (such as computer  or flash storage for instance) Some information here https://mobiletrans.wondershare.com/backup/how-to-backup-samsung-secure-folder.html 

Without any back up of the Files think it will be problematic.

Whilst transferring Data between phones using Smart Switch often works out fine   some Members have noticed glitches on occasions  and prefer a Fresh Install using Backups.

[PaulM1]

I appreciate your contribution (as ever), @JAMES4578, and I have edited my post accordingly. Thank you.

[Beakytzw]

My secure folder and Iver two HUNDRED documents and Photographs are gone. FU smart switch and Samsung!

[beastencourt]

This was a massive failure on Samsung's part.. same thing happened to me going from S21 Ultra to S23 Ultra.. I used SmartSwitch and copied all contents over to the new phone. HOWEVER (and without notice) all of the contents within the Secure Folder on my 'old' phone have mysteriously been deleted. What a complete joke. The Secure Folder should be the HIGHEST priority to preserve and it just deleted itself indiscriminately?? The rest of the phone is still the exact same, and I figured I would have been able to go into the Secure Folder and manually copy out what I had there. The contents were private and highly important. They are DELETED. Wow!!! Thanks for nothing guys!

[mmrtin]

My secure folder has just randomly deleted itself. I havent switched mobile devices or anything it just apparently deleted itself. Is there anyway to retrieve?

[Demiscuzz]

My secure folder has also deleted itself.
How do I get this critical data back?

[Aylin7]

Sadly, I still don't have the folder back. I kept my old phone but no solution has been found.