“As our lives become more and more connected online, we increasingly need to also consider what to do with the digital estate, the online accounts of our dearly departed, many of which hold photos and personal memories, as well as sensitive financial information.”
Settling the estate of a loved family member or dear friend is a challenging and emotionally wearing process, reports The-Parallax in the article “How to settle your loved one’s digital estate.” If an estate plan is in place, some things are easier. However, even then, there are possessions to sort through, assets to distribute and many tasks that need to be done. Now, add digital assets to that list.
Most people know they need to do something, but few have a plan in place to direct their executor how to handle their digital assets. Creating a digital will can make the process easier. That could include everything from a Facebook account to photos in the cloud.
This is still a relatively new part of our digital lives that you want to prepare for. The tendency is to do nothing because people don’t know where to start. Therefore, here is an overview of the most popular digital platforms and their requirements. This is a rapidly changing area, so do the homework to make sure that these policies are still in place.
Amazon does not yet have an automated process in place to close a deceased person’s account.
Apple asks that the executor contact Apple Support. You’ll need to provide the user’s Apple ID, email address and a death certificate.
Facebook requires a special request and proof of the authority under local law that you are the representative of the deceased person or their estate. You’ll also need their birth certificate and death certificate. Facebook allows you to make an account a memorialized Facebook account, where content remains visible according to their privacy settings and friends can continue to post. Living individuals can appoint a legacy contact to manage their account.
Google requires the use of a form, verification that you are a relative or legal representative, a death certificate and additional documents. If you are preparing for your own death, you can use the Inactive Account Manager to share parts of your account data, appoint a trusted contact and notify someone, if their account has been inactive for a certain period of time.
Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, provides two options: remove it or memorialize it. Verified immediate family members can require that the account be closed with proof that you are an immediate family member, along with the decedent’s birth and death certificates.
Linked In has a form to request the closing of a user profile. You’ll need to provide the person’s profile URL, the date of death, a link to an obituary, the most recent employer, emails associated with the account and other information.
Twitter has a format requiring you to make a request and will send information required. However, Twitter will only work with immediate family members or those authorized to act on behalf of the estate.
These are just a few of the top platforms. They all have a process that requires verification of the identity of the requester and of the death of the decedent. Newer platforms pop up all the time and some have processes, while others do not for the death of an account holder.
This is still a relatively new area and will change as time goes on. Speak with your estate planning attorney to make sure your estate plan includes addressing digital assets.
Reference: The-Parallax.com (Sep. 14, 2018) “How to settle your loved one’s digital estate”
“隨著我們的生活與網上變得越來越緊密，我們越來越需要考慮如何處理數碼資產，我們親人離去的網上賬戶，其中許多都持有照片和個人記憶，以及敏感的財務信息。”
家人或朋友的遺產，這是一個具有挑戰性和情感上的過程，據文章中的Parallax報導，“How to settle your loved one’s digital estate.”(如何解決你所愛的人的數碼資產) 如果有資產計劃，有些事情會更容易。但是，即便如此，仍然需要排序，分配資產和需要完成的許多任務。現在，你需要將數碼資產加到該列表中。
大多數人都知道他們需要做些什麼，但很少有人制定計劃來教他們的執行人如何處理他們的數碼資產。寫數碼遺囑可以使過程更容易。這可能包括從Facebook帳戶到雲端照片的所有內容。
這仍然是您想要準備的數碼生活中相對較新的一部分。一般人傾向於什麼也不做，因為人們不知道從哪裡開始。因此，這裡是最流行的數碼平台及其要求的概述。這是一個變化很大的領域，所以要做功課以確保這些政策仍然存在。
亞馬遜 (Amazon) 還沒有自動系統來關閉死者的帳戶。
蘋果 (Apple) 請求執行人聯繫蘋Apple支援。您需要提供用戶的Apple ID，電子郵件地址和死亡證明。
Facebook根據當地法律要求提供特殊證明您是死者或其遺產的代表。你還需要他們的出生證明和死亡證明。Facebook允許您將帳戶設為一個紀念的Facebook帳戶，內容根據其隱私設置保持可看見，並且朋友可以繼續發布訊息。
Google要求使用表格，驗證您是親屬或法定代表人，死亡證明和其他文件。如果您正在為自己的死亡做準備，您可以使用非活動帳戶管理器來共享部分帳戶數碼，指定信任的聯繫人並通知某人，如果他們的帳戶在一段時間內處於非活動狀態。
Instagram由Facebook擁有，提供兩種選擇：刪除或紀念。經過驗證的直系親屬可以要求關閉該帳戶，但要證明您是直系親屬，以及死者的出生和死亡證明。
Linked In有一個表單，用於請求關閉用戶配置文件。您需要提供此人的個人資料網址，死亡日期，訃告鏈接，最近的雇主，與該帳戶相關的電子郵件以及其他信息。
Twitter有一種格式要求您提出請求並將發送所需的信息。但是，Twitter僅適用於直系親屬或遺產執行人。
這些只是頂級平台中的一小部分。他們都有一個過程, 需要核實申請人的身份和死者的死亡。較新的平台一直在出現，有些還有流程，也有他平台沒有程序處理帳戶持有人的死亡。
這仍然是一個相對較新的領域，並將隨著時間的推移而改變。與您的資產規劃律師聯繫，確保您的資產計劃包括處理數碼資產。
參考: The-Parallax.com (Sep. 14, 2018) “How to settle your loved one’s digital estate”