Systems and methods for data storage and readout using hybrid nucleic acid- polymeric molecules are herein disclosed. A molecular data storage medium is presented comprising a header and a footer, each comprising or consisting of at least one unit of a first chemical species; and a sequence-controlled polymeric chain of a second chemical species located between said header and said footer, said polymeric chain encoding for a desired bitstream-format media. A nanopore-based device and methods for decoding digital information from the molecular data storage