SD Card Suddenly not found by phone or computer

Memory Cards SD | microSD | CFast | CFexpress | CompactFlash
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My SD card was working perfectly in my LG Optimus L90 yesterday and connected to my HP Windows 7 laptop without any issues just 2–3 days ago. However, today, when I tried accessing media on my phone, it showed nothing. I checked the phone settings, and it stated that no memory card was detected. To rule out a phone issue, I tested SD cards from three friends, and all of them worked fine on my phone, so the phone itself isn’t the problem.

Next, I inserted my SD card into my laptop, but it didn’t recognize it either. In contrast, my roommate’s memory card was instantly detected and opened on the same laptop. I also tried using the Device Manager, but my SD card wasn’t listed, nor did ZAR recovery software detect it.

What steps can I take to recover the data, particularly a crucial video I need by next week?

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Hi @Kizie

Have you checked our knowledge base articles?
(Get Support for Your SSDs and Flash Products | SanDisk)

Try this one.

Have you opened a Support Case?
If not, contact SanDisk Technical Support for assistance.
(Contact Support | SanDisk)

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Since your SD card isn’t detected by your phone or laptop, it may have physical or logical issues. Check Disk Management on your laptop to see if it appears and try assigning a drive letter. Test it with another card reader or PC to rule out hardware issues. Running chkdsk might fix minor errors. If nothing works, try data recovery software to recover your data.

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I found it expedient to have a USB multicard reader on hand in case of problems

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USB port issues and card reader damage should be the first thing you should check. If there’s no problem, your SD card might be logically damaged or corrupted. Try following solutions:

  1. Run CHKDSK
  2. Change the drive letter in Disk Management
  3. Update SD card driver
  4. Format the SD card
    If you need more help, check this guide. This includes the fixes and recovery plan.
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Since Device Manager and recovery tools like ZAR don’t detect it, the card’s firmware or memory chip may be damaged. First, test the card using a dedicated USB card reader and check if it appears in Disk Management as unallocated or RAW. If detected, create a sector-level image with tools like ddrescue or Stellar Imaging to avoid further damage, then try to recover the files using PhotoRec or Stellar Photo Recovery.