Who gets my blog when I die?
In this digital age, you probably have at least one email account. Perhaps two. And maybe a Facebook page to keep in touch with your grandkids, and a LinkedIn account to stay networked with your professional colleagues. You might even have a blog.
What will happen to all that online information after you die? To the account holder’s benefit, many sites refuse to grant access to anyone other than the account holder. Or, the companies have cumbersome hoops for heirs to jump through to gain control of those accounts, which might include getting a court order. And, the government has very little regulation stipulating how online accounts are to be disposed of upon the account holder’s death.
You will first want to inventory your digital assets: you email accounts, blog, social media and networking accounts (Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.), and any information stored on employer intranets or computers.
Then, determine the worth, if any, of your digital property. A popular blog or Twitter account with many followers may be worth money. Computer files of your manuscript about the history of railroads, or your ornithological research may have educational value. Photographs and other personal assets may or may not have monetary value, but they almost certainly have significance to your heirs.
Most of us fiercely guard our passwords and account information because of warnings against hackers, viruses, and identity theft. But once you’ve listed all your accounts, you need to decide who will be in charge of each of them (or all of them).
Then, write out your instructions and keep them with your estate planning documents. Otherwise, the decision may end up in the hands of the courts or the website administrators.
James D. Perry
Tags: Anaheim, California, Estate Planning, estates, Garden Grove, Gifting, Orange, Orange County, Santa Ana, Tustin, wills
