Physical assets like a house, cash, bank accounts, etc. are no longer the only portfolio to a person’s legacy. Nowadays, it’s digital assets that can significantly contribute to a person’s overall “wealth” and legacy. This “wealth” is a topic that can easily confuse and overwhelm many, as they navigate through new digital platforms, technologies and wealth creation.
If You Own:
Crytocurrency accounts
Social media accounts like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.
Personal files, photos or videos on Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.
You will need to provide your heirs access information, so that they will be able to access your digital assets.
Financial Digital Assets
These include monetary wealth acquired from digital currencies e.g. investments or trade in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum Ripple, Litecoin.
Sentimental Digital Assets
Digital assets include items of sentimental wealth— items that are not worth any money, but contribute to the legacy and life of a person. These items can include email accounts, social media handles on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc., cloud accounts, and even on-device data e.g. smartphones, tablets or computers.
In the Event of Death
Upon death what happens to these digital assets? You may have a substantial amounts in your Bitcoin account or other digital currency, photos and videos on your phone and an active Facebook account which may contain sentimental videos and photos. How will your executors navigate through your “stuff” to distribute it to your beneficiaries?
Actions to Safeguard your Digital Assets
The first step is to get an estate plan in place (regardless of whether you have digital assets or not), but with digital assets, ensure that your estate planning attorney knows how to integrate, document and update the information within your estate plan.
The executor of your estate will need to access your accounts, which means usernames, passwords, 2 –Step Authentication codes and access should be clearly mapped out. The risk in not doing so means zero access to both types of digital assets and any wealth gained in cryptocurrency will simply be lost.
Cryptocurrencies are secured in a way traditional currencies are not. It is important to know how to access cryptocurrency assets once the account holder passes away, since they are monetary assets—much like printed currency. Cryptocurrencies are typically protected by a “key”— read our previous Blog here.
In California, creating an estate plan is crucial for some, in order to avoid probate. However, families may still find themselves in probate court litigating their inheritance and fighting between siblings. With something as intangible as digital assets, the burden of proof can swing judicial decisions. If there is no access to an account or documentation in some shape or form, it will be a tough to assert ownership.
Although we do provide superior estate litigation services, Velasco Law Group focuses more on keeping families out of litigation. Our objective is to preserve and protect your wealth. Digital assets are an important element in our everyday lives; our children have grown up in a digital world. The future is shaped around the internet, the cloud, and the worldwide web. You should protect wealth and understand how to leave behind your digital assets and legacy. Velasco Law Group can help guide you through the estate planning process.
Our law firm is dedicated to keeping up with important trends that affect families and businesses. Velasco Law Group has offices in Long Beach, Downey and Irvine. We have a team of English and Spanish speaking attorneys and paralegals to assist you. Our initial consultations are complimentary. Find out more about how you can protect your digital assets at any one of our office locations. Call 562-432-5541 to schedule an appointment.
Two thirds of adults with online pensions, investments, savings and bank accounts have failed to inform next of kin about their accounts.
That money could easily go missing unless family members know it actually exists and where it can be found.
The research from Lloyds Bank, produced exclusively for the Daily Express, is a wake-up call for millions who are failing to take enough care to document their financial affairs.
As we spend more of our lives online, we all need to prepare for what happens to our digital legacy when we finally die.
LOST IN THE NET
People take far greater care with their paper-based finances than their online accounts.
Many also keep family members out of the loop, with almost four out of 10 failing to talk to loved ones about their personal and financial affairs should they die, Lloyds’ research shows.
Some are more focused on trivial concerns, such as wondering what will happen to their Facebook page in the event of their death.
Lloyds’ director of bereavement, Paul Sheehan, says people need to take more care of their online finances as we shift away from paper: “Digital makes managing your finances easier, but it can make things more difficult for next of kin taking on your financial affairs when you die, as so many are financially unprepared for death.”
People tend to take far greater care with their paper-based finances than their online accounts
He says the first step is to talk to family and friends about your financial position: “This is especially true for online accounts, which would be harder to locate if your loved ones are not aware of them.”
Sheehan suggests preparing a written list of all your online and offline accounts and keeping it in a safe place where others can find it later: “This will provide important information for your family and friends and can help ease stress during what will be a tough time.”
Your digital wealth may include much more than just your financial accounts.
“Check the terms and conditions on any music, books and films you have purchased digitally to see if these can also be passed onto friends and family,” he adds.
You also need to produce details of any debts that will have to be paid out of your estate when you die, so that you do not bequeath a nasty shock for your loved ones.
People need to take more care of their online finances as we shift away from paper
LIFE COSTS
Another worry for grieving families is meeting immediate expenses and debts after death, but Sheehan says banks and other financial services companies should be able to help with this.
For example, insurers offering over-50s life cover or funeral plans should quickly release funds to grieving families.
He says banks should be supportive in an emergency: “They may help loved ones gain access to the deceased’s credit balance to fund funeral expenses and other costs, such as inheritance tax, probate fees and confirmation fees, before all the legal paperwork is sorted.”
Almost four Brits out of 10 fail to talk to loved ones about their personal and financial affairs
WAY TO A WILL
Writing down your wishes on paper makes them legally blinding, but too many Britons still fail to make a will, including almost eight out of 10 under-45s.
Sheehan urges everyone to write or update their will to avoid legal complications for loved ones: “You can draw up a will yourself, but it makes sense to use a will-writing service or solicitor instead.”
James Antoniou, head of wills at Co-op, says January is peak time for people to amend and update their wills: “Christmas brings people together, but it can also lead to conflicts and family fallouts while for others New Year is a trigger to get their finances in order.
“As a result we tend to see a peak in will amendments coming through in January.”
With every website these days wanting us to sign up and have an account for something or other, have you ever wondered what happens to your ‘stuff’ when your digital life is the only one left? A web user can easily have 50 online accounts now, not just limited to social sites like Facebook or Instagram, Twitter, YouTube or LinkedIn.
We’re talking about your email addresses, your bank accounts, where you buy things online like eBay, iTunes, and Amazon. Then there’s Dropbox, online videos, YouTube, subscriptions to news stories and all those animal photos, dating site profiles; the list goes on. They contain personal detail, information about you, your stories, history and opinions, images and videos and other sorts of digital files.
Well, unless you make provisions to have it removed, your digital life lives on after you haven’t. This can at the very least be misleading for acquaintances and distressing for loved ones. But after you’re gone, who owns your online accounts or how can they be removed? Unfortunately the real world of privacy and governance legislation is way behind the fast-moving digital world and it’s still a grey area.
Some US states are just starting to tackle this online quandary while countries like Australia lag behind. Without the proper user names and passwords it can be very difficult for your family to access your accounts – even something as simple as Facebook. But all the Australian Government has to say about it is this:
“Social media networks usually have procedures in place to deal with the accounts of deceased members. As these procedures can differ between networks the best thing to do is to search the ‘help’ section of the network in question if you wish to close an account.”
In June, Facebook active user numbers hit the two billion mark and around 8000 of them die every day.
In June, Facebook active user numbers hit the two billion mark and around 8000 of them die every day. That’s quite a statistic and one that might challenge the networking giant to keep up with requests. However, Facebook will remove an account or turn it into a locked memorial account after a special request by an immediate family member or executor. Twitter will deactivate an account upon request by an estate executor or a verified family member with a copy of the death certificate. And Google has established an inactive account manager which prompts users to decide the fate of their accounts before they die. However, it’s pretty strict and warns that obtaining access to a deceased person’s email account will be possible only “in rare cases”.
In Australia, you can stop most unsolicited email from being sent by registering with the Association for Data-driven Marketing and Advertising (ADMA) for the ‘do not mail’ service and the big banks have details on their websites about how to close deceased accounts. The consensus about closing other people’s accounts is you’ll probably need to be an immediate family member and or be able to present a copy of the death certificate.
The University of Melbourne has prepared a comprehensive document titled Death and the Internet which explores this area in greater detail. But most experts recommend treating your digital assets like they’re tangible.
Making a list of your accounts along with their passwords and details with your will is certainly a good idea. It will provide you with peace of mind and make life easier for those loved ones you’ve left behind.
You could be declared dead online, even when you’re alive and well, costing you access to your bank accounts and credit lines–and it can happen easier than you might suspect. (Photo: KEYE TV)
AUSTIN, Texas —
Imagine being alive and well–and then getting a notification that you’re dead. It happened to one Texas woman, and it took months for her life to get back to normal.
Barbara Kleinschmidt was “killed” electronically. She says she lived for months without access to her bank accounts and credit.
“You’re telling me I can’t get my money, you closed my credit accounts, but I am alive?” recalls Kleinschmidt.
When she called the Social Security office, Kleinschmidt says she was told someone, possibly a coroner or funeral director, faxed in a document listing her as deceased. They would not give her any further information.
She even got a letter from her bank, addressed to “The estate of Barbara Kleinschmidt” that asked her family to accept condolences for their loss.
Kleinschmidt says she got depressed and confused.
“I didn’t want to live, because I just didn’t know where, because it was hard for me to know what was going on,” she remembers.
Kleinschmidt believes someone she knows may be behind her digital death.
When we called the Social Security office, we were told Kleinschmidt was listed as deceased for nearly a year.
A representative wouldn’t tell us how the mistake happened, only that it could be due to something as simple as a typing error by an employee or someone else with access to the Social Security Administration’s Death Master File. Coroners, doctors, even credit unions, have access to it.
“It’s very problematic,” said Shawn McCleskey, a retired Secret Service agent and Director of Organizational Education and Measurement at the University of Texas at Austin Center for Identity.
McCleskey says more needs to be done to determine who’s who.
“How much diligence do they, in fact, do to verify if that person is in fact the person who should be submitting the documents?” wondered McCleskey.
He says many agencies don’t have the time or money to be as thorough as they should be.
While Texas’ system seems pretty secure, so-called “master hacker” Chris Rock tells KEYE TV the system is only as strong as its weakest link.
Rock presented at hacker convention Def Con on the weakness of the electronic death registration system. He was able to get into the electronic death registration system in four states. A Texan could be declared dead in any of them.
According to Rock, people can easily pose as doctors or funeral directors. He calls it a fatal flaw in the system. In some states, all it takes to set up an account is a doctor’s name, address and medical license number. A basic internet search can often yield that information.
And McCleskey says Kleinschmidt’s theory about her “death” being a personal attack might ring true. He’s seen people steal identities not for financial gain, but for public humiliation.
“If you just want to cause someone some real grief, have them declared dead,” said McCleskey. “That would be. Talk about, what this woman is experiencing, a real nightmare.”
Kleinschmidt says her main concern now is making sure her nightmare doesn’t happen to someone else.
“People are looking at me like I’m still dead,” said Kleinschmidt.
A look at the phenomenon of digital memorials; repositories and time capsules of a life even after it’s ended in the real world
On the first death anniversary of his father-in-law last week, Pradip Mehta (36) decided to show the 120 relatives gathered at his home in Rajkot the digital memoriam he had created through Shradhanjali.com, India’s first and only memory portal. As he clicked on the page, the photograph of his father-in-law popped out to the accompaniment of the Mrityunjaya mantra. Curious relatives looked on as he showed them the photo album on the portal where all good moments with the deceased we’re captured for eternity. “There were two reasons why I chose this kind of memoriam,” he explains. “Instead of paying a fortune on print media for the announcement, this online profile will be up for 30-odd years. And by uploading all the pictures and videos, my wife and I are making sure that he will be ‘alive’ for our 12-year-old son in the future.” Mehta regrets that he grew up with practically no idea of his ancestors. “We don’t take efforts to know our lineage at all.”
That may not be the case with the millennial generation and the people who follow them. With an entire life online — selfies uploaded to Facebook, tweets, posts, Instagrams of their meals and dubsmashes — leaving behind a legacy is less a matter of choice and more a matter of inevitability. Everybody leaves behind a footprint on the Internet, but some of it can be controlled even after their death. Today, your loved ones have a ‘life’ beyond their death — on memorialised pages on Facebook, on webpages dedicated to their memory, and even on QR codes on their gravestones that will link to information about them online.
Indeed, the dead may soon outnumber the living, at least in the virtual space. A US statistician has calculated that Facebook’s dead will outnumber the living by 2098. And when that is the case, the rules must evolve.
In memoriam
Take the way social norms have evolved in the virtual space. When a death is announced on social media, online friends begin sharing thoughts and comments. Some may not have even met the deceased in the real world but their digital interactions had been extensive enough for them to suffer a sense of grief.
So, how does one mourn a loved one who has piled up an extensive amount of digital possessions? Do they deserve an online memorial? Facebook certainly thinks so. On the social networking website, families can get full access to profiles only if there’s documented instruction from the deceased. You can let the site know if a person has passed away, and Facebook will memorialise the account, which means that person’s Facebook account now appears with a ‘Remembering’ above their name. A legacy contact (someone you choose to look after your account if it’s memorialised) can then write posts, respond to new friend requests and such. There are many such accounts on the site — take the accounts (now memorialised pages) of actor Sanjit Bedi (of TV show Sanjeevani fame), Sheryl Sandberg’s late husband Dave Goldberg and late F1 driver Jules Bianchi. All this, if you don’t explicitly ask for your account to be deleted after your death.
In an earlier interview to The Huffington Post, Facebook spokesperson Fred Wolens had said: “When we receive a report that a person on Facebook is deceased, we put the account in a special memorialised state. Certain more sensitive information is removed, and privacy is restricted to friends only. The profile and wall are left up so that friends and loved ones can make posts in remembrance. If we’re contacted by a close family member with a request to remove the profile entirely, we will honor that request.”
Time capsule
Shradhanjali.com works a little differently. For Vivek Vyas, co-founder of Shradhanjali.com, the idea was born out of empathy rather than business opportunity. He says one particular incident prompted him to offer the memorial service online. He and his friend (now partner) Vimal Popat were eating samosas at a roadside restaurant off Rajkot in 2011. The paper in which the savouries were packed was the obituary page. “It was disturbing to see the photographs of the deceased wrapped around the samosas, oil-stained and later, discarded as rubbish.” The friends spoke of having an online memoriam which would be decorous to the memory of the departed.
Back home, the two researched similar sites and to their surprise, found no other site offering such a service in India. “Let’s do this,” Popat urged Vyas, and the two quit their jobs in an insurance company to start the memorial portal. The site went live in 2011, allowing you to relive memories of your loved ones.
First, one has to register by going online to this B2C website with a simple user interface. Once a payment of Rs 2,700 is made for a 30-year subscription, the subscriber can upload information, photographs and videos about their loved one. They are offered a choice of 10 languages (for friends and relatives to write their condolences) and a selection of music that they wish to be played whenever someone visits the profile page. The content is completely user-driven and once the page goes ‘live’ the link is sent to all the emails that have been uploaded.
Vyas maintains that their website is gaining traction — there are about 400 paid subscribers, many of them are agencies which partner with print media giving ‘packages’ to the client — and in spite of not marketing aggressively, the number is growing. “The concept connects with people in a rather intimate manner,” he says, “and some of the people to whom I have explained the site have shed copious tears, they are so moved by the concept of memoralising the departed.”
In fact, one of the subscribers initially wrote a cheque of Rs 27,000 insisting that the yeoman service needs better cash appreciation.
The founders maintain that their venture is not comparable with Facebook or a blog as Shradhanjali is free of any advertisements and even sends out reminders of birth and death anniversaries. “Besides, the others are not exclusive platforms for memorials,” Vyas stresses.
Life, beyond
Clearly, the meaning of the memory of a loved one is different today. It exists beyond photo albums and physical memories of that person’s friends and family. Madhu Nataraj, choreographer and dancer, Natya Stem Dance Kampini, discusses what the community page dedicated to her late mother Maya Rao on Facebook means to her. Although the page was made when she was alive, as a way for her students to address her and to talk about her book, after her death in 2014, Nataraj says today it has become a sort of memorial page, where people post their remembrances of her mother.
“She lives on through her art. Every time I dance or step on stage — and I’m sure this is true even of her students — I remember her. This is just another dimension of that remembering,” Nataraj says. In another case, the FB page of Dean D’Souza (a close friend of a writer who did not wish to be named), who died in a helicopter crash in 2013, “brings comfort and a smile”. He adds, “Friends are constantly posting on it, and his profile picture is changed regularly, reminding us of a happier time. I found it unnerving at first have FB remind me that “It’s Dean’s birthday”, but not anymore over the years.”
Nataraj however emphasises that for an artist of her mother’s stature, the legacy is through the memory of her art. Of course it feels good when people pay tribute to her online. But a virtual ‘memorial’ of her mother’s life isn’t the only legacy she has.
Digital remembering
But the burgeoning number of such services makes it clear that for many others, a virtual repository of their loved one’s life is important. Take The Digital Beyond, a site that discusses how to plan digital legacy management — Facebook accounts, email, bank accounts etc — after death.
There are others. In a page straight out of the movie PS I Love You, a service called My Wonderful Life sends posthumous emails to loved ones. Then there’s MyDeathSpace.com, which tracks social media profiles of the dead and maintains an extensive message board and Facebook page.
Services such as Living Headstones allow you to emboss a QR code upon a loved one’s headstone. Scanning it connects to a website containing information you and friends add about your loved one, such as: an obituary, family heritage and history, photos, comments by friends and relatives and even links to share content on Facebook or Twitter. Another, Quiring Monuments, adds a link to the granite memorial through which smartphones can connect to your loved one’s personalised website.
There are those who might raise their eyebrows at such platforms, but Vyas will have none of it. “Just because you have a mandir (a prayer room) at home, the need for temples will not diminish, will it? There is a decorum given to the memory of the dead on our site.”
Do we forget?
But there is also a flipside. In the real world there is a period of mourning, people come to offer condolences and then, it is time to move on. Cyberspace may not allow this clean transition from grief and mourning to a semblance of routine. The thing about having such a digital memoriam is that grieving does not really end. This is a setback, according to clinical psychologist Dr Anand A Rao. “Grief has to be suffered immediately otherwise it will become a reaction later which will require clinical help,” he says. But reliving the memory each time someone posts a query or shares a memory does not help either. “Ultimately, grief has to stop and loved one’s routines have to continue. Typically I would recommend the presence of such a page for about 15 days, no more,” he says.
There is also the matter of insincere tributes. As Nataraj says, she was very hurt when people who “hardly knew” her mother had posted selfies captioned: ‘Maya didi’, “followed by five hearts”. “I found that callous,” she says. “There are so many so-called obits and condolence messages and everybody wants to claim that familiarity with her that I’m sometimes wary.”
But it doesn’t look like the digital memorial phenomenon is going away anytime soon. Rohini Lakshane, researcher at the Centre for Internet and Society, agrees with Dr Rao to an extent, saying that getting constant updates could thwart the process of grieving or healing. “But at the same time, I could see how reaching out to a larger community via public updates or photos could give them strength, moral support and empathy,” she says. She points out that if a person feels that their online persona or presence is an extension of themselves, it’s a perfectly “legitimate wish” to have. “Given the importance attached to details of events that we post online, I suppose the desire to create a time capsule of it will continue to exist.”
