When a file is deleted on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod, where is the data typically moved to before it is overwritten?

• A. .Trashes\501
• B. /Trash
• C. /Deleted
• D. /RecycleBin

Answer: (A)

When a file is deleted on iOS devices, the system doesn’t erase the blocks immediately. Instead, the data is moved to a hidden Trash location at the root of the device’s filesystem, in a directory named .Trashes with a subfolder for the user (commonly shown as .Trashes/501 for a user ID of 501). This lets the file be recoverable for a time until the Trash is emptied or the system needs that space, after which the blocks may be overwritten.

The other names don’t reflect iOS’s trash location. /Trash, /Deleted, and /RecycleBin are not where iOS stores deleted items, and the actual path is the hidden .Trashes folder (with a user-specific subdirectory), not a generic trash path.