Recovering Data from Flash Memory
If you need help recovering data which you have accidentally deleted, you are in luck. This is the problem with the most simple solution and the highest chance of success, so long as the deleted data has not been overwritten. In order to recover the deleted information you simply need to employ a program which can read the drive for you information and restore it. Some freeware options for task can be found here.
If you have written over your deleted data or even formatted the drive the chance of recovering your data is less than before but there is still hope. Your best bet is to try Photo Rec, a free program which works with almost any OS, including Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, and even Solaris. Downloads are available here. The program may see strange at first, but with some time is has proven to work well.
If your have another problem, such as a drive which has symptoms of data corruption, different measures must be taken. The most important is to judge the value of your data. Chances are the information exists somewhere else, like on a computer or the internet, so it is not worth it to makes further attempts. If this is not the case, like with digital photographs, you can keep trying to recover the data. If you cannot get Photo Rec to work you can try other programs, some of which are free, like Flash Recover or PC Inspector or Photo Recovery.
If the data is very important or you feel that the drive has become worn out from too many read/write cycles, you should seek the help of a data recovery specialist. Many of these services exist, and though they may be expensive, it could very well be worth the price. There are a number of companies which actually specialize in the recovery of flash data. Here are some examples:
Iomega DataRevoery
CBLTech
Swift Data Recovery