Individual skill
recovering-deleted-files-with-photorec
Recover deleted files from disk images and storage media using PhotoRec's file signature-based carving engine regardless of file system damage.
internal/tools/skills/data/digital-forensics/recovering-deleted-files-with-photorec/SKILL.md
Source commit d42f381ad34843e71a42658e5c57290c713e85af
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- Matches the observed repository HEAD
- Yes
- Scanner rules are current
- Yes
- Repository scan complete
- No
- Skill scan complete
- No
- Observed behavior
- Network or broad shell
- Last checked
- Nov 9, 2026
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Repository context
- Repository stars (not skill ratings)
- 1,331
- Repository last updated
- Nov 9, 2026
- License
- Apache-2.0
Observed agent integration: No specific integration evidence. Standard SKILL.md installation does not imply verified compatibility.
- cybersecurity Repository topic
- security Repository topic
- bug-bounty Repository topic
- automation Repository topic
- autonomous-pentesting Repository topic
- ai-agent Repository topic
- ai-security Repository topic
- ethical-hacking Repository topic
- golang Repository topic
- penetration-testing Repository topic
- forensics Declared skill tag
- file-recovery Declared skill tag
- photorec Declared skill tag
- file-carving Declared skill tag
- data-recovery Declared skill tag
- evidence-recovery Declared skill tag
- data Derived category
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# Recovering Deleted Files with PhotoRec
## When to Use
- When recovering deleted files from a forensic disk image or storage device
- When the file system is corrupted, formatted, or overwritten
- During investigations requiring recovery of documents, images, videos, or databases
- When file system metadata is unavailable but raw data sectors remain intact
- For recovering files from memory cards, USB drives, and hard drives
## Detection Gaps & Validation
Signature carving recovers bytes, not files-as-the-user-knew-them. Understand what PhotoRec structurally cannot do before reporting results:
- **Fragmentation is the core limitation.** PhotoRec carves contiguously from a header until a footer or size cap; if a file was stored in non-contiguous clusters (common for large/edited files on a busy volume), you get a truncated or corrupt result and the tail is silently lost. A "recovered" 4 KB DOCX from a 2 MB original is a fragment — validate, don't assume completeness.