If it’s the data side that got damaged, you might be able to restore the disk, as long as the damage is not major. The actual data is written on a thin film that’s sandwiched between two layers of plastic. The plastic on the outside can be ground down and polished back to a smooth, clean finish. Disk polishers used to be kinda popular back in the day.
![[Rant] I am too dumb to be left alive. I just tried to clean a CD with Isopropyl Alcohol...](https://i.imgur.com/OrXJoDC.jpg){kind=link}
If it’s the data side that got damaged, you might be able to restore the disk, as long as the damage is not major. The actual data is written on a thin film that’s sandwiched between two layers of plastic. The plastic on the outside can be ground down and polished back to a smooth, clean finish. Disk polishers used to be kinda popular back in the day.