File is damaged and can't be opened

[SchoharieNY]

I'm very sad today...

most of the files on my MacBook Pro give an error of ""file name" is damaged and can't be opened. You should move it to the trash."

On a m4v it also gives the info com.apple.photos.videoconversionservice created this file September 28.2019 A jpg just gives the error and the date it was created. I did just export a bunch of photos out of Photos.

I am running macOS Catalina version 10.15.6

 

[Honza1]

Do you have backups? I assume yes, but you should check them and make sure they are valid and all works. Do not overwrite existing backup (possibly corrupting good data), make a new backup if you still can. On new external drive. Ideally bootable (using Carbon Copy Cloner).
After you make sure you have backup...
Did you restart? I had something similar yers ago and restart helped.
If that does not help, run disk utility and run First aid. May be there is problem with disk?
Get OnyX for your macOS version and in Maintenance try to rebuild all of those weird things - Launch services, dyld, XPC etc. You can run all maintenance there, but you may loose few settings. And web cache etc.
and I am at the end of my list, if it still does not work, I am bit confused.

 

[Taz Mangus]

Maybe try booting into Recovery Mode and run Disk Utility First Aid on the drive. If that does not work then try what @Honza1 suggests.

 

[SchoharieNY]

Thank you both very much! I do have backups but did not back up after I uploaded my iphone photos to Photo this week. Isn't that always when it happens??

 

[Honza1]

Thank you both very much! I do have backups but did not back up after I uploaded my iphone photos to Photo this week. Isn't that always when it happens??

Yes, it does. I think somehow these disasters sniff out the moment when they are least convenient and cause most trouble... My last SSD crash was few days before international travel. Made the travel more exiting for sure.
That's why at least one backup layer needs to be automatic, so one cannot forget. From this point of view the TimeMachine Apple designed, with all its issues (do NOT get me started), is amazingly practical for general use. Thanks to TM (as last resort) I have yet to loose file in the the last ~10 years or so.