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Protecting your digital estate

by Alexandra Middleton | 31 Dec 2013

Compared to other elements of estate planning, many people disregard or are simply unaware of the importance of having a plan for their digital assets.

Your digital estate refers to all data stored on digital devices, such as a computer, smartphone or external hard drive, online user accounts like Facebook and LinkedIn and any information stored in the cloud.

While social media and digital content may seem trivial as you near the end of your life, the reality is that our digital assets can hold significant financial and sentimental value.

As well as protecting your personal information, having a plan for your digital assets means your family aren’t left in the dark about your wishes.

Just as you would appoint an executor for your financial assets and physical property, the same goes for your digital identity. This could be arranged in an official capacity through your will, or be a spoken agreement with a friend or family member. 

The first step to taking control of your digital assets is to put together a list of all the places you have digital information stored. These could include:

  • Email – Gmail, Hotmail, Outlook
  • Social media – Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+
  • Blogs – Wordpress, Tumblr
  • Video – Youtube
  • Photos – Instagram, Flickr
  • Data storage – Dropbox, Google Docs
  • Online shopping – Ebay, iTunes, App Store, PayPal, Amazon
  • All data stored on mobile devices or personal computer

For some of these assets their value is sentimental, offering loved ones access to photos and communications that are a record of your personal and professional life. With others, such as online shopping accounts, it’s important to close these accounts in order to protect your identity. Many organisations, such as banks, are now opting for paperless communications, which means your digital information may lead your loved ones to financial assets they were otherwise unaware of.

Identifying digital assets

Once you have collated a list of your digital assets, the next step is to indicate what you would like done with the information stored in each. Would you like your accounts shutdown without your family viewing them, or are there certain photos or email threads you would like them to download and keep? Are there songs you have purchased on iTunes that you would like to transfer to someone else?

By dictating what is valuable you will maintain control of your communications, while also saving the time your family will have to spend sorting through your files and personal information. 

A simple way to manage your accounts is to supply a loved one or your lawyer with a list of usernames, passwords and the answers to your secret questions. If you don’t feel comfortable providing this level of transparency, some digital providers do have systems in place to manage information belonging to the deceased.

How to close an account

Google Inactive Account Manager

Google recently launched a feature for managing all aspects of their accounts, including Gmail, YouTube, Google Drive and Google+.

Users elect a timeout period, which means that if no activity has been recorded on your account for a certain amount of time it is deemed inactive. As per the user’s preference, the system will then transfer the virtual property to trusted contacts or delete the account completely. As a security measure the system sends emails and texts to the user to confirm the account is no longer needed. 

Twitter

If an executor provides their name and contact details, their relationship to you, your Twitter username and a copy of your obituary, they can download your tweets and close your account. 

Facebook

If your family has your username and password they can choose to deactivate, delete, download or memorialise your account.

LinkedIn/Flickr/eBay

All require a copy of an obituary or death certificate to close an account.

Hotmail

Hotmail will forward all emails and saved contact details from your account to family members upon request.

Pay Pal

After receiving proof of death PayPal will close an account and issue a cheque in the name of the account holder for any funds remaining in the account.