Most of us now keep a large part of our lives online: photos in cloud storage, years of email, social media profiles, subscriptions, and sometimes cryptocurrency. So when someone dies or loses capacity, the people left to sort things out can find this digital legacy surprisingly hard to deal with.
This article explains what counts as a digital asset, why these assets cause problems for executors, and what should and should not go in your Will. It also sets out practical steps to make life easier for your executors and attorneys.
What makes up your digital legacy?
It helps to separate two things.
- Ordinary assets you reach online. Your bank accounts, savings, pensions and investments are not really digital assets. Online banking is just the way you access them. Your executors deal with these through the bank or provider in the usual way, using the death certificate and, where needed, the grant of probate. They do not need your passwords to do this.
- Assets that only exist digitally. These include photos and videos stored online, email accounts, social media profiles, blogs and websites, domain names, digital music or film libraries, gaming accounts, online shop or marketplace accounts, loyalty points and air miles, and cryptocurrency.
Your phone, tablet and computer also matter, because they hold the data and logins for many of these accounts.
Some digital items have money value, such as cryptocurrency or a business website. Others have mainly sentimental value. Your photo library may hold the only copies of family pictures, and old emails may contain messages from people who have since died. However, providers often license items such as music or e-book libraries to you rather than selling them outright. So under the provider’s terms, they may end when you die.
Why digital assets cause problems for executors
Your executors must identify your assets, secure them and pass them on in line with your Will. Digital assets make that harder in three ways.
- Knowing what exists. Digital assets often leave no paper trail. If nobody knows about a second email account, a crypto wallet or photos in the cloud, they may never be found.
- Getting access. Executors usually cannot get in without login details. The Computer Misuse Act 1990 makes unauthorised access to computer systems an offence. It is not clear how this applies to family members logging in after a death, but there is a risk.
- Terms of service. Each platform has its own rules. Some delete accounts, some memorialise them, and many ask for a death certificate and proof of authority, often the grant of probate.
Meanwhile, subscriptions keep charging and domain names expire. Cloud services may also delete inactive accounts or stop storing files when payments stop. As a result, an estate can lose money, and families can lose photos, while executors try to sort things out.
Never put passwords in your Will
Once the court grants probate, a Will becomes a public document. In other words, anyone can order a copy. For this reason, never write passwords, PINs, recovery codes or other access details into your Will.
It is also worth knowing that most online providers’ terms say you must not share your log-in details. So your executors are usually better off contacting each provider and following its process for deceased users.
What your Will can do
Your Will is still the right place to deal with digital assets that have value. Dealing with them does not mean listing every account, because that would quickly go out of date. Instead, your Will can:
- make clear that your executors have authority to deal with your digital assets, including online accounts, digital files and electronic records
- leave items with value, such as cryptocurrency or a business website, to particular people
- give your executors discretion over private material, such as personal emails, so they can decide what to keep or delete
- in some cases, appoint an executor who deals only with certain assets, such as your online writing or photographs
Clear wording helps when your executors deal with service providers, although each provider still applies its own rules. You may also hear the phrase “digital executor”. However, it is not a formal legal role in England and Wales. If you want a particular person to deal with your online accounts, you can either appoint them as an executor, or name them in a letter of wishes as someone your executors should involve.
Use a letter of wishes for the detail
A letter of wishes sits alongside your Will. It is private, not legally binding, and easy to update. So it is a good place to say things such as:
- whether you would like your social media accounts memorialised or closed
- who should receive copies of family photos and videos
- which email accounts should be checked for practical records and which should simply be closed
- which subscriptions your executors should cancel
- who you would like to help your executors with your online accounts
Even so, a letter of wishes should not contain passwords. Keep access details separate.
Keep an inventory, stored separately
A simple list of your accounts makes a real difference to how your executors handle your digital legacy. For each one, note the provider, the username or email address you log in with, what it is for, and what you would like to happen to it. Include your devices, any subscriptions and any domain names, and where they are registered. Do not write passwords in the list itself.
Keep this list somewhere safe and separate from your Will, and tell your executors where it is. Also, update it at least once a year, because an out-of-date list can be almost as unhelpful as none. It is also sensible to keep copies of your most important photos and documents on an external drive.
A password manager can help. Many password managers have an emergency access feature that lets a trusted person request access after a waiting period. Check how your provider’s feature works before relying on it.
Use the platforms’ own legacy tools
Several large providers now offer tools to plan ahead, for example:
- Apple: you can add a Legacy Contact to your Apple account.
- Google: the Inactive Account Manager lets you choose whom Google tells, and what it shares, if your account is inactive for a set period.
- Facebook: you can choose a legacy contact or ask Facebook to delete your account after your death. Instagram accounts can be memorialised or removed.
- X (formerly Twitter) and LinkedIn: both have processes for family members or executors to close an account.
Because these tools work within each provider’s terms, they are usually the safest way to give someone access to your data. However, settings change from time to time, so check them on each provider’s help pages.
Cryptocurrency needs special care
Private keys or a seed phrase (a list of words that restores a wallet) control cryptocurrency. There is no bank to call if these are lost, so the asset may disappear for good. On the other hand, anyone who has them can move the funds.
- Make sure your executors know the cryptocurrency exists, which coins you hold, and which exchanges or wallets you use.
- Note where any hardware wallet is kept.
- Do not put keys or recovery phrases in your Will or letter of wishes.
- Think about how a trusted person could securely find the keys after your death, without exposing them during your lifetime.
If you hold significant amounts, we can refer you to an appropriate professional for technical or financial advice.
What about Lasting Powers of Attorney?
A Will only takes effect when you die. However, if you lose capacity during your lifetime, a registered Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) lets your attorneys deal with your finances. Banks and other providers have their own processes for attorneys, so your attorneys should register the LPA with each provider rather than log in as you.
If you have particular wishes about your online accounts, we can discuss them when we prepare your LPA. Wording in an LPA needs care, because the OPG can reject instructions it cannot put into effect.
A short checklist
- List your online accounts and devices, and what you want to happen to each one.
- Keep that list, and any access details, separate from your Will.
- Set up legacy contacts or inactive account tools where providers offer them.
- Make sure your executors know about any cryptocurrency and how to find it.
- Put your wishes in a letter of wishes, and deal with valuable digital assets in your Will.
- Also consider LPAs, so someone can help if you lose capacity.
- Finally, review your digital legacy plans every year or so, and after big changes.
Talk to us about your Will
When we write your Will, Edward will talk through your digital assets with you and include wording that gives your executors clear authority to deal with them. If it helps, we can also prepare a letter of wishes alongside it for a fixed fee. If we wrote your existing Will, we can update it to add digital asset provisions. If your Will was written elsewhere, we can prepare a new Will for you. Our Wills Pricing page shows the prices.
To discuss your Will, call us on 01865 507174 or email info@adewills.co.uk. You can also read more about our Will writing service.
