Good news for those keen to control their digital legacy

Up to now, when a person died and their account was memorialized, Facebook restricted its visibility to friends-only, even if that was not how your account was set up. So unless you were already Facebook friends, you couldn’t see the account or any of its content.

In response to requests to respect the choices a person made in their lifetimes in terms of privacy settings, that has just changed. Facebook has decided to maintain the visibility of a person's content as it is when a person passes away. This gives their extended community of family and friends ongoing visibility to the same content they could always see, if that was the lifetime privacy setting which had been selected.
 
Facebook has also decided to start offering a way for anyone who has suffered the loss of a loved one to have a personal movie made for them, capturing some of the posts and photos they have shared over the years. Those wishing to commemorate their loved ones in this way can request a Facebook “Look Back” video by submitting an online request form here
 
Julie Hutchison, family finance expert at Standard Life says: “With more and more of our interactions happening online, it’s important we understand what our digital legacy could be and make sure we take control. But things are not always straightforward and the digital files of millions of people now present some challenges when it comes to who owns them and how to pass them on. The changes announced by Facebook seem to be a positive move. Facebook says they are part of a larger, ongoing effort to help people when they face difficult challenges like bereavement on Facebook.
 
“Of course your digital legacy can extend to online savings and investments too - do your loved ones know about these and how to access them if you are no longer around? There is a great deal to think about in this digital age when it comes to inheritance, so if you are taking advantage of free will month in March, then bear your digital life in mind when making your will.”
 
Checklist
 
Here’s two tips to think about :
 
1 Have you left a list of your online accounts, so someone can follow-up after you’re gone?  It could be a good idea to store a list with your Will (not in your will), where you note the online accounts you use to run your money.  After all, if you don’t have paper statements any more, it could be tricky for your loved ones to piece together your estate and identify all your funds after you’re gone.
 
2 Anecdotally, lawyers have been reporting that some people have been keen to record their online passwords in their will.  But this may not be the best idea, since passwords can change frequently.  A will also becomes more of a public document after your death, so again it’s not necessarily the best place to record confidential information like passwords.  And you should also bear in mind that in most instances you are not supposed to be sharing passwords to your personal accounts, but you do need to find a practical solution.
 
For more information on digital legacy, see Julie’s blogs which look at practical issues affecting our online life, including photos, music and e-books : lifeoutlined.co.uk/moneyplus-blog/not-the-digital-afterlife/
 
And you may find this blog on Google’s Inactive Account Manager facility useful too:
 
lifeoutlined.co.uk/moneyplus-blog/controlling-your-legacy/