DriveSavers
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Data recovery |
| Founded | 1985 |
| Founder | Jay Hagan, Scott Gaidano |
| Headquarters | Novato , United States |
Number of employees | 85 (2009) |
| Website | www |
DriveSavers, Inc. is a private data recovery firm based in Novato, California. Established in 1985 by entrepreneur Jay Hagan and business executive Scott Gaidano, the company focuses on retrieving information from damaged digital storage devices.
History
DriveSavers was founded in 1985 by former Jasmine Technologies executives Jay Hagan and Scott Gaidano, starting with an initial capital of $1,400. Originally providing both hard drive repair and data recovery services, the business rapidly transitioned to concentrate solely on data recovery within its first eight months.
In 1992, DriveSavers enhanced its technical expertise through a collaboration with SuperMac Technology to manage support and warranty services for SuperMac Mass Storage Products. The company further expanded by merging with Data Recovery Disk Repair in 1994, continuing under the DriveSavers name.
A $2 million investment in 2008 enabled DriveSavers to establish five ISO-certified cleanrooms, improving its hardware repair and data extraction capabilities. Between 2004 and 2009, the employee count grew from 35 to 85, indicating consistent company expansion.
The organization caters to a broad spectrum of clients, including government entities and prominent individuals. To help clients cope with the stress of data loss situations, DriveSavers employs a specialized data crisis counselor experienced in professional crisis intervention.
DriveSavers possesses exclusive licensing agreements with all leading hard-drive manufacturers, guaranteeing that its recovery services do not invalidate device warranties. Its service offerings cover data retrieval from hard disk drives, solid-state drives, smartphones, servers, digital cameras, and iOS devices. The company has also innovated proprietary techniques for recovering data from T2- and M1-equipped Macs featuring embedded SSDs. Despite the prevalence of cloud backups, DriveSavers remains effective in mitigating personal data loss risks. Among its notable recoveries is the retrieval of lost data from the floppy disks belonging to Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, preserving significant intellectual assets.
Maintaining rigorous data security standards, DriveSavers is certified HIPAA-compliant and undergoes annual SOC2 Type II audits. Additionally, it holds encryption training certifications from industry leaders such as GuardianEdge, PGP, PointSec, and Utimaco.
Security certifications and protocols
DriveSavers utilizes cleanroom facilities that meet federal classifications ranging from 100,000 down to 100, ensuring meticulously controlled conditions for data restoration processes. To adhere to agreements with both state and federal entities, all personnel are subjected to thorough background screenings. The organization upholds critical data protection certifications such as HIPAA for its healthcare clientele and GLBA for financial sector customers, reinforcing its commitment to operating within regulated markets.
Awards
- Storage Visions Visionary Company Award, 2014
- Flash Memory Summit Most Innovative Flash Memory Consumer Application Award, 2018
- Better Business Bureau A+ rating
