On www.soscisurvey.de, we retain server backups for 12 months. These backups usually enable us to restore data that has been deleted (within 12 months).
However, the process of extracting single projects from the backups, and re-integrating them into the running database takes time and efforts. As this process drained more and more valuable time from SoSci Survey development, we made up a barrier. This barrier makes sure that only such data is restored that has more value than it takes us effort to restore it.
After we have have clarified whether your data can be restored (send an email to info@soscisurvey.de and tell us the name of the project and when the data was deleted), you may choose from one of the two options:
(1) If you speak German and English, then go ahead and translate one of the manual chapters that's only available in German so far. We really apprechiate such a contribution, as it also helps future user.
(2) The other option is to donate 60 EUR to a charity organization of your choice. Please send us a copy of the donation receipt.
The process of restoring the data will take about 3 days. Please note that projects can only be "fully" restored, i.e., all data and all settings and all questions and everthing else will be reset to the state if had, when the backup was created. It is not possible to restore data while there is newer (valuable) data in the project.
We retain a daily backup only for 7 days. Usually we have at least a monthly backup for the last 12 months. That means, if new data has been collected shortly before the data was deleted, if may not be possible to restore the latest data.
Addition
Since the GDPR came into effect, personal data (mailing address list and separately collected contact data) are stored separately from the data collected in the questionnaire. The backups of personal data are deleted already after 1 month, a recovery of the mailing address list (incl. opt-in) and of separately collected contact data is no longer possible after that.
The above information is still valid for the recovery of the other data collected in the questionnaire on www.soscisurvey.de. Here, a recovery is usually possible within 12 months after deletion of the data.
Dominik Leiner
SoSci Survey GmbH