Amazon Web Services (AWS) deleted a 10‑year‑old account and all its data without warning

 Amazon Web Services (AWS) deleted a 10‑year‑old account and all its data without warning

 as reported by developer Abdelkader Boudih (aka Seuros) Yahoo+9Seuros Blog+9Windows Central+9:

🚨 Incident Overview

  • On July 23, 2025, AWS terminated Boudih’s decade‑old account and erased all associated data—without any warning, grace period, or recovery option Seuros Blog+1.

  • Boudih had been using AWS for ten years, following best practices like multi-region replication, backup strategies, and segregated encryption keys. Despite all that, he still lost everything because AWS itself became the failure point Seuros Blog+1.

🗓️ Timeline & Support Interaction

DateEvent
July 10AWS issued a verification request with a 5‑day deadline, including a weekend Seuros Blog+1.
July 14Boudih’s reply; support was initially unresponsive Seuros Blog.
July 16–20Replies came slowly; AWS escalated internally Seuros Blog.
July 20–22Boudih submitted ID and utility bill scan, which AWS claimed was unreadable—even though the document was a clear PDF Seuros BlogWindows Central.
July 23Account terminated; Boudih asked whether data survived—only template responses followed Seuros BlogWindows Central.

  • Meanwhile, AWS asked for a five-star review from Boudih early in the communications, even as he raised urgent concerns about losing access to his data Seuros Blog+2Tom's Hardware+2.

📜 Policy vs. Practice

  • AWS documentation states there is a 90‑day grace period after account closure, during which accounts can be reopened and data remains intact Windows Central.

  • However, Boudih’s case was not voluntary closure—his account was suspended, and termination happened in less than 20 days, apparently contrary to public policy Tom's Hardware.

🤔 Cause: AWS Third‑Party Payer or Internal Error?

  • AWS attributed the deletion to a “third‑party payer” issue: apparently the payer (covering $200/mo) had disappeared after the FTX collapse Reddit.

  • But Boudih had his own payment method on file and expected AWS to switch billing—yet AWS never did Reddit.

  • According to an alleged AWS insider, the verification request was a smokescreen—Boudih’s data had already been erased due to a syntax error during an internal audit or clean‑up, and all customer inquiries were just cover-up tactics Tom's Hardware.

🌐 Community Reaction

On Reddit and Hacker News, many users emphasized the importance of external backups. One Reddit comment put it simply:

“If I need… a database in AWS, it is live‑mirrored to somewhere within my control… backups protect me from my own mistakes, and the local canonical copies and backups protect me from theirs.” Hacker News+2LowEndTalk+2

And another:

“This is why shared payer models are problematic.” Reddit

LowEndTalk discussions reinforced the takeaway: don’t rely solely on one provider—use multi‑vendor, off‑site backups no matter how big or "reliable" the provider seems LowEndTalk+1.

✅ Key Takeaways

  • AWS terminated a long‑standing, fully paid account abruptly, destroying a decade of data without notice.

  • AWS support failed to handle the case transparently, delaying responses, ignoring straightforward solutions, and prioritizing form responses.

  • Official AWS policy contradicts the support experience—officially 90‑day retention exists, but in practice it wasn’t honored.

  • A possible human error gone undetected resulted in mass deletion, with support allegedly masking it using verification excuses.

  • Essential lesson: Even if you follow best practices and AWS guidance, your data is only safe if you maintain independent, external backups.

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