Traditional estate planning typically involves a great deal of thoughtful consideration about how to divide money, personal property and family heirlooms among our loved ones, in addition to leaving a personal legacy to support charitable causes that mean the most to us. But now there is something else to add to the mix: digital assets.
What Are Digital Assets?
Your digital assets run the gamut from online bank accounts, cryptocurrency accounts and bill payment accounts to photo-sharing sites, social media accounts, websites and online storage accounts. They can also include email accounts, retail “rewards” accounts and accounts related to your personal interests, such as frequent flyer accounts or even Pinterest and iTunes.
Who Has Access to Your Digital Assets?
While some of these assets have primarily sentimental value, others can have significant financial value. And, if digital assets aren’t included in your estate plan, then your heirs might not know about that online stock or that bank account — and those potentially valuable assets could be lost forever.
Because protecting your privacy is paramount when you are interacting online, it is now vital to be explicit in giving your heir(s) access to your digital assets in your estate plans. At the very least, be sure to specifically give permission in your will for your executor to access your online accounts. A master list of accounts and accompanying passwords should be kept in a safe place, such as a safety deposit box, and your estate document(s) should include instructions regarding where the passwords are located. Be sure to provide details for how you’d like every aspect of your online world handled after your death, including social media profiles — should they be cashed out, closed down or left online as a memorial?
And most importantly: keep your information current. Usernames, passwords and lists of accounts must be updated regularly! Keep in mind that nearly every type of online account has a “terms of service” agreement, most of which are non-transferable. There are also several federal laws that prohibit certain unauthorized access to computers and online accounts as well as sharing deceased users’ account contents with relatives. Originally designed to prevent online fraud, these laws can keep surviving family members from accessing information related to a deceased loved one’s estate.
Remember: Digital Assets are Just That — Assets.
Including your digital assets in your estate planning can protect your privacy, even after death, and ease the management of your estate for your loved ones. Plan for your digital assets in the same way you would any other valuable tangible (or intangible) asset. After all, digital assets are today’s shoeboxes of photos, letters and other mementos. Planning can help to preserve this facet of your personal legacy in digital form.
Questions? Contact David Toll, JD, senior associate vice president in Drexel's Office of Gift Planning, at 215.895.1882 or giftplanning@drexel.edu.