4 Fixes: Downloaded Files Deleted Automatically on Windows 10

Recently, many users have found that their downloaded files in Windows 10 are always automatically deleted, and they will also be deleted after re-downloading. Why are downloaded files deleted automatically? How should we stop the problem from happening again? How to recover deleted files on Windows 10? Here, we will provide you with detailed and effective solutions.

Why are my downloaded files deleted automatically?

Common reasons for downloaded files getting deleted automatically on Windows 10 are as follows.

▶ Files deleted without asking by Windows Defender. Windows Defender acts as antivirus software for securing the system and it defends against viruses, Trojans, and other forms of malicious programs. But sometimes, it may mark some safe files as harmful and delete them by mistake.

▶ Files deleted by Storage Sense to free up space. When you are running low on disk space and you have turned on Storage Sense, your temporary files, downloaded files, and even files in the Recycle Bin will be automatically deleted to free up disk space.

How to stop downloaded files getting deleted automatically on Windows 10

How do I stop Windows 10 from automatically deleting files? If you are sure that your downloaded files are safe, you can fix the “downloaded files are automatically deleted on Windows 10” with the following methods.

Solution 1. Turn Storage Sense off

Storage Sense is a disk clean feature for freeing up disk space in Windows 10 and Windows 11, and it is on with the default settings. If your downloaded files get deleted automatically on Windows 10, you can disable the tool or adjust some configurations to solve this problem.

Step 1. Click on the Windows Start button and select “Settings”.

Step 2. Click “System” and then “Storage”. Toggle the switch to turn Storage Sense off.

If you don’t want to disable the feature, you could click on the “Configure Storage Sense or run it now” button under the switch, open the drop-down menu under “Delete files in my Downloads folder if they have been there for over” and select “Never”.

Solution 2. Add exclusions for downloaded files on Windows Defender

If certain files or downloaded installers keep getting deleted, they may be marked as harmful files or programs by Windows Defender. Then, you can fix "my downloaded files automatically deleted" by adding exclusions to Windows Defender.

Step 1. Go to Windows Start > Settings > Update & Security > Windows Security > Virus & threat protection in turn.

Step 2. Select “Manage settings” under “Virus & threat protection settings”.

Step 3. Then, tap “Add or remove exclusions” under “Exclusions”.

Step 4. Click on “Add an exclusion” and choose from File type, Files, Folders, and Process. Then, click Add to stop downloaded files deleted automatically.

Solution 3. Turn off file check for downloaded files

If downloads are being deleted automatically on Chrome or other browsers happens, you can stop Windows Defender deleting files automatically by disabling web apps and file checks.

Step 1. Open Windows Security and click on “App & browser control”.

Step 2. Then tap on the “Reputation-based protection settings” position.

Step 3. Turn off the check for apps and files, and click Yes when UAC prompts for approval.

Solution 4. Uninstall faulty updates on Windows

Another reason for downloads being deleted automatically is that newly installed Windows updates delete your deleted downloaded files. If you have installed a faulty or incompatible Windows 10 update recently, it may remove your downloads without asking. In this case, you could uninstall the faulty update to fix “downloaded files are deleted automatically”.

Step 1. Click on “Update & Security” in Windows Settings.

Step 2. Scroll down to tap on “View Update History” on the Windows Update tab.

Step 3. Tap on “Uninstall updates”. Locate and right-click the recent updates, then select Uninstall.

Then, you can check if the “downloaded files deleted automatically” issue persists.

An Easy Way to recover deleted downloaded files for free

If your downloaded files are automatically deleted and they cannot be downloaded again or are charged for downloading again, MyRecover can help you get them back easily. This professional data recovery software is capable of recovering deleted and lost data in three simple steps.

It enables you to recover files from emptied Recycle Bin, restore shift-deleted files, retrieve files from formatted disks, recover data from Windows crashes, etc. It supports you to recover videos, audio, photos, Microsoft Office files, emails, and more formats of files. You can download and install it on your computer and learn how to get back deleted downloaded files on Windows 10.

Step 1. Launch MyRecover, hover the mouse over the partition/drive where your removed downloaded files were saved, and click Scan.

Step 2. This tool will start a full and quick scan for all deleted and missing files on this disk. Use the file filter or file/folder search in the upper right corner to find the items you need.

Step 3. Preview and select the files you want, and press “Recover x files” to restore them to a specified location.

Conclusion

That’s all about how to fix “downloaded files deleted automatically” on Windows 10. Besides, you can use MyRecover to get back your wiped downloads without a breeze. With this multi-functional recovery software, you can recover deleted files from external hard drive, SD card, local hard drive, and deal with any data loss situation without worrying about data loss.