Jessa Jones Corrects Apple on Data Recovery and Gets Banned: The Truth About iPhone Water Damage

The Billards' Story: When Apple Says "Data Is Lost Forever"

The documentary opens with Josephine and Dave Billard from St. John's, Newfoundland. The couple spent five months traveling through Greece, Europe, and Norway, capturing thousands of vacation photos on their iPhone. When they returned home to Newfoundland and went for a canoe trip on a nearby pond, disaster struck - they flipped the canoe, and the iPhone sank to the bottom in four to five feet of water.

In a panic, Josephine called Apple to ask if there was any way to recover their photos. The response from Apple was clear and definitive: "Your data is lost. There is no way to recover your photos from a water - damaged iPhone."

Josephine recalls: "We were shocked and surprised that the iPhone people and Apple can't help. They virtually had no interest in us. They'd like to sell you a new phone right away, but they don't really care so much about the data, and we were more concerned about the data."

The Billards eventually found Jessa Jones and iPad Rehab through a local repair shop referral. When Jessa successfully recovered all 8,000 of their vacation photos, the couple was in tears. Josephine said: "I grieved over those pictures because I did not think it was possible to get them back. You made my day."

Who Is Jessa Jones? The Molecular Biologist Fixing iPhones

Jessa Jones holds a PhD in Molecular Biology and Human Genetics from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Her path to iPhone repair began unexpectedly in her own home. When her young children dropped her iPhone into the toilet, she faced Apple's same answer: "Your phone and data are lost."

Rather than accept that verdict, Jones did what any molecular biologist would do - she literally sledgehammered the toilet in her front yard to retrieve the phone and began teaching herself electronics repair through online research.

Jones explains her perspective on the work: "I apply the same sort of analytical reasoning skills and working with things that are really, really small that have no user manual. So now I try to fix iPhones, figure out how they work, and how to get them to turn back on when they stop working."

On women in repair, she observes: "I think that women in general are very good at repair. They tend to have the ability to be very gentle and yet at times apply enough pressure to get things to move around. They're appropriately cautious but also aggressive, and some of those are kind of skills that you develop being a mom."

The 95% Recovery Success Rate: Professional Expertise vs. Corporate Claims

When asked what percentage of water - damaged iPhones she can recover data from, Jessa Jones answers without hesitation: "Ninety - five percent."

This is not a casual claim. It's based on hundreds of successful recoveries from phones that Apple support told their owners were completely unrecoverable. The difference between Apple's assessment and professional reality is stark:

This fundamental difference in incentive alignment is crucial. When Jones says 95% of phones are recoverable, she has nothing to gain from false optimism - she only gets paid if she succeeds. Apple's motivation is reversed: they benefit from convincing customers that recovery is impossible.

Apple's Support Forum: Suppressing the Truth About Data Recovery

Apple operates an official online support community forum where customers post questions about device repair and troubleshooting. While Apple allows some users to volunteer as "ambassadors" and provide advice, the company carefully monitors what information gets shared.

Jessa Jones, with her expertise and good intentions, began posting accurate information in Apple's support forums. When customers asked if data from water - damaged iPhones could be recovered, she would explain that yes, professional services like hers could often recover the data. She contradicted Apple's standard narrative.

Jessa Jones describes the experience: "It felt incredibly unfair given how hard I tried to follow the rules. I've read the terms of use. I have followed the terms of use to the best of my ability. And then this is the result."

She concludes: "They don't want people to know. They don't want people to try to fix their phone, to recover the data. They don't care. They blame you. It's your fault."

CBC's Investigation: Verifying Apple's False Claims

To verify Jessa Jones's claims about Apple's misleading information, CBC reporters contacted Apple's official support channels themselves and asked the same question: Can data be recovered from a water - damaged iPhone?

This investigation demonstrates that the false information about data recovery is not incidental or isolated - it's systematic across Apple's official support channels.

Apple's Corporate Culture: Control at All Costs

Despite her frustration with Apple's forum ban, Jessa Jones doesn't attack Apple's products. She actually compliments the design and build quality of iPhones and iPads. Her criticism is directed at Apple's corporate approach to device ownership and repair.

Jones describes Apple's approach this way: "Everything that Apple does kind of goes with that same mindset. If you think of them as the kind of kid in school that says, 'You can borrow my crayons, but don't bear down.' Just kind of the bossy, controlling, hover mother, and everything they do is just sort of with that attitude."

This observation captures a broader tension in Apple's business model: the company wants to control every aspect of the user experience, including what customers are told is possible. When that control conflicts with user interests - like data recovery from water - damaged phones - the company chooses control.

The forum ban against Jessa Jones is not an accident or an overzealous moderator. It's consistent with Apple's documented approach to suppressing right - to - repair information and discouraging third - party solutions.

This Documentary and the Right to Repair Movement

Jessa Jones's experience with Apple's forum censorship is part of a larger pattern. The right to repair movement advocates for users' and independent technicians' ability to repair devices, access repair documentation, and provide repair services.

Apple has consistently opposed right - to - repair legislation. The company argues that allowing third - party repairs compromises security and safety. However, cases like the Billards' experience - where Apple refuses to help recover data but also suppresses information about who can help - suggest that Apple's objections to third - party repair are more about control and profit than safety.

The documentary suggests that Apple's opposition to third - party repair and information - sharing is not primarily about safety, but about maintaining a monopoly on device ownership and controlling what customers believe is possible.

Key Lessons: What This Documentary Teaches

• Apple's claims about data recovery are demonstrably false. Water - damaged iPhone data is recoverable in the majority of cases, despite what Apple support tells you.
• Professional repair requires specialized expertise.Jessa Jones's background in molecular biology and training in microsoldering - not a general repair shop - is why she succeeds where others fail.
• Apple actively suppresses information about alternatives. The company bans forum users who provide accurate information that conflicts with Apple's narrative.
• Financial incentives matter. When Apple profits from telling you your data is lost, and a repair expert only gets paid if data is recovered, trust the repair expert.
• Backup is still your best defense. If the Billards had regularly backed up their photos to iCloud, professional recovery would not have been necessary.
• Time is critical for water damage. The longer you wait to seek professional help, the more corrosion spreads and the harder recovery becomes.
• Right to repair is about information access. Apple doesn't just want to prevent repairs - it wants to prevent customers from knowing repairs are possible.

If Your iPhone Gets Water Damaged: Don't Believe Apple

Why This Documentary Matters Beyond iPhone Data Recovery

The CBC investigation into Jessa Jones and her conflict with Apple is really about three interconnected issues:

This documentary provides clear evidence that when corporations claim they're acting in customers' interests - like Apple's argument that third - party repair compromises security - it's worth asking: Who benefits from the policies they're defending? In this case, Apple benefits enormously from convincing customers that only Apple can help them.