From Leo's mailbag:
> From: A Computer User
> Sent: April 18, 2005
> To: Ask Leo!
> Subject: Does AOL keep my email?
>
> Leo,
> Hi:
>
> I am a Mac user using AOL as my ISP. I have had several
> computers over the past three years, which have all been
> sold, and am wondering if AOL actually has archives of all
> old e-mail. I just want my OWN e-mails between me and my ex!
> Very bad divorce and I need them BADLY.
>
> I understand I could have restored deleted archives if I
> still had the old laptops, but since I dont, I am hoping AOL
> has archives (they told me today there is no such thing...).
>
> I have heard of people getting a subpoena to get anothers
> e-mail, but I just need my own, and hope that it exists and
> that there is some way other than me getting a subphoena for
> my own mail...
Sorry for the messy divorce thing.
My understanding is that AOL does not keep email archives.
In fact that's probably true about most ISPs.
What they *may* have are backups of the servers that held the
email. How long they've kept the backups is difficult to say,
but for their purposes I wouldn't expect it to be very long.
And if they *do* have the backups, it'd be horrifically expensive
for them to retrieve your email. Imagine sorting through three
years of daily backups for hundreds, or thousands, of servers
looking for just your email. Yikes!
So, it might just take a court order to get their attention.
And even then, I certainly wouldn't expect it to be easy, if
possible at all.
Sorry.
Thanks for asking,
Leo
Article 47
| Category:
EMail
