Deleted an image and then found its properties somehow

Hi Anthony,

What you’re seeing is essentially metadata that Windows retained even though the file itself was deleted. When a file is removed, NTFS may still keep its entry in the Master File Table until that space is reused, which allows recovery tools or certain shell extensions to display properties like creation time, attributes, and the security identifier of the user who created it. The fact that the file shows as 0 bytes indicates the data stream is gone, but the header information was still accessible. The odd future creation date is usually a clock or metadata anomaly, often caused by system time misconfiguration or corruption in the recycle bin index. If you want to fully clear such remnants, empty the recycle bin and run cipher /w:C: or a similar wipe command to overwrite free space. Otherwise, these ghost entries are harmless and will disappear once NTFS reuses the record.

If the above response helps answer your question, please hit "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

Domic V.

Hi Anthony Kaka,

Has your issue been resolved yet? If it has, please consider accepting the answer as it helps others sharing the same problem benefit too. Thank you :)

Domic V.