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Most of us will have at least some personal property when we die. These possessions are called our “estate.” We know we need to have a will, clearly directing our family and the courts how to handle our estate.
But what about our digital estate?
We have more to worry about than real estate and other physical assets. For many, personal history, family photos, even schoolwork are stored online. Services like Facebook, Instagram and Gmail have replaced safety-deposit boxes, photo albums and filing cabinets as repositories for important documents, photos and letters. Young Americans don’t produce physical documents anymore. All their “personal papers and effects” are electronic.
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Online companies aren’t unfeeling. There are valid reasons for treating online content differently than physical property. Legally, your Facebook account is more like a magazine subscription or gym membership than a photo album or filing cabinet. It is a contract for services between Facebook and an individual. Just as you can’t inherit a gym membership, you can’t inherit a Facebook account. You don’t own your Facebook content the same way you own your car.
However, there are steps you can take to ensure your loved ones have access to your digital estate.
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- First, include authorization in your will for your executor to access your online accounts. This is part of what is needed by many online services to allow access by family after an account holder’s death. Also, the law may catch up with technology before your will is needed. A will may be all that’s necessary in the future.
- Second, make sure someone you trust can log into your computer and phone. In many cases, things posted to online services also exist on a PC or phone, and will be much easier to access from those devices.
- Third, with your will, keep a list of all your online accounts so your loved ones know where to find your digital assets. You can keep a list of passwords, too, but this is difficult as passwords change often.
- Fourth, download a backup of your online accounts. Many services, including Facebook, allow you to download a copy of all your posts and photos. Do this monthly or quarterly and keep it on a local PC your loved ones can access. By taking a few of these steps now, you can save your loved ones hours of paperwork and frustration. More importantly, you can ensure your digital estate is not lost.
