Passing on your digital footprint and assets
08 | 12 | 11
In the digital age an increasing
amount of time and money is spent on the internet. A recent survey
of 2000 adults found over 25% held more than £200 worth of films,
videos and music online. It should now be a consideration when
making a will how you wish to distribute your digital assets, in
the same way you would consider who you would like to receive your
offline assets. This should be dealt with by making a record of
web-based assets, deciding who you would like to have them and
noting how to access them. Although it is important to remember
that as a will becomes a public record after death, details such as
passwords should be noted separately and stored with the will.
Another consideration is your
living online legacy such as social networking affairs, email and
internet banking. It is estimated that 1.78 million Facebook users
will die this year, 200,000 of them will be over the age of 55.
This highlights that it is not only the younger generation that
need to consider their digital footprint in their wills but the
older generation too, many of whom may already have made a will and
should now consider revising it to include their digital
wishes.
Web-based service providers have
varying policies on what they require for someone other than the
account holder to gain access. Although there have been recent
calls to regulate online industries in this area, there remains a
vast discrepancy between the policies of different websites. To
make it easier for executors to tie up such affairs, it is
advisable to make a list of usernames and passwords to be stored
safely with your will. It may also be worth noting in your will how
you wish for your social networking assets to be dealt with. Many
providers offer not only the option to delete accounts after death
but to memorialise them, preserving them indefinitely for friends
and family.