Paper Title: Recovering Data from 3D NAND-Based Devices

Paper Abstract: How do the characteristics and the practical implementation of 3D NAND affect chip-off Data Recovery and Erasure Verification? We look at some of the elements of Ontrack’s research into reliably and accurately reading 3D NAND for both the purpose of recovering data and also to verify that when data is erased from a SSD using industry-standard methods, it really is no longer recoverable. 3D NAND is quite different from its planar cousin and introduces extended addressing to access cells within the extra layers, vendor-unique implementation of die operations, new data scrambling and error-correction (ECC) algorithms and package electrical signals having functions outside the scope of the ONFI (Open NAND Flash Interface) standard. In this presentation we look at some of these differences and show how Ontrack has developed technology and processes to handle 3D NAND at the chip-off level.

Paper Author: Robin England, Hardware Research & Development Team Lead, Ontrack Data Recovery

Author Bio: Robin England is the lead engineer in Ontrack's data recovery hardware research and development team. He leads Ontracks efforts to develop techniques to recover inaccessible customer data. He is currently working on improving data recovery tools and processes, developing hardware adapters, and researching data algorithms used by NAND flash controllers. Robin is often quoted in magazines (including Forbes and BusinessInfo), blogs, and newsletters (including Data Centre News) on subjects such as recovery methods, privacy, and ransomware. Robin has over 20 years experience in data recovery, and has worked on a wide variety of cases including recovering data from a hard drive that had been shot at by a police suspect. He has given presentations on data recovery at several past Flash Memory Summits. Robin holds a Higher National Diploma (awarded by BTEC in the UK) in Electrical and Electronic Engineering.