Many people are conducting business on the Internet, including online banking, shopping at Amazon, uploading files to the cloud, posting videos to YouTube, or communicating via Facebook and Instagram.
What happens to your digital online accounts and files when we become incapacitated or pass away? Will your loved ones have access to them? Where will they find our usernames and passwords? Who can take down your Facebook page or YouTube account? And if you have photos, videos and other files stored on the cloud, who will have access to them?
These are questions almost everyone needs to consider, and they often require estate planning answers. For example, if you become incapacitated and a loved one takes over managing your finances online, is this legal? While you may have given verbal consent, a bank may not have a Durable Power of Attorney on file with the necessary authorization. As far as the bank knows, you are the person logging in and paying your bills or moving your money. Is this fraud on the bank?
And what if you pass away and someone starts withdrawing money from your account or moving money to someone else’s account without notifying the bank of your death? This may be illegal, but it happens, usually because of improper estate planning.
Here are some steps you can take to better manage your digital assets:
Inventory Your Digital Assets
Make a list of all your online accounts, including e-mail, financial accounts, social media, and anywhere else you conduct personal or financial business online. Include your username and password for each account. Also, include access information for your digital devices, including smartphones and computers.
Store the List in a Safe Place
If you make a list on paper and keep it at home, someone who you do not trust might discover it and gain unauthorized access. A better solution is to keep a list in a safe or safe deposit box. In any case, your executor or agent under your Durable Power of Attorney needs to know where it is and how to gain access.
Give Access to Your Executor and Agent
Once you have created your digital asset inventory, provide it to the people who will need it if you become incapacitated or when you pass away, or let them know how to find it when the time comes.
Authorizing Language
Make sure your executor and your agent under your Durable Power of Attorney have authority to deal with your online accounts. This may require either providing online account holders with the proper written authorization to access your digital assets or including this language in your Last Will and Durable Power of Attorney.
Update the Inventory
As you open new online accounts, purchase new devices, and change usernames and passwords, make sure to update your list so that it is current.
Speak to an Estate Planning Attorney About Digital Assets and Estate Planning
As the Internet makes our lives easier and quicker, it also makes them more complicated. We all need to take steps to make sure our loved ones have the necessary access when access becomes necessary. Preparing for the administration of your digital assets upon your incapacity or death should be part of your comprehensive estate plan. For help updating or creating your estate plan, which may include digital assets, please contact us at (760) 673-7600 or schedule a consultation on our website.
