Make Your Delete on Death List
Give Yourself an Ounce of Peace of Mind
With any luck, we will soon get rid of the habit of declaring the pivotal part of worst case scenario planning is this:
Leave a list of all your internet accounts and passwords for your loved ones to find when you die.
As an estate attorney who focuses on digital assets, I’m the person who grieving people bring these lists of accounts and passwords to. Here’s my hot take: it’s annoying.
What should someone do when they come into possession of a random list of accounts and passwords? Does your opinion change if you know for certain it was created by someone who is now dead? What if the list is dated in such a way that suggests it was created 3 years ago? 5 years ago?
Maybe it was your spouse who made the list, and you used the list to figure out how to pay the cable bill after canceling their credit card… it might be useful for that. It might also fail you in that scenario(true story: the list was so outdated, when contacted, the cable provider on the list claimed to no longer serve the address).
I cannot say that a spreadsheet or handwritten list of the accounts and passwords that make up your internet life with no context is always helpful. I cannot even say it’s better than nothing. People worry. People think they need to investigate. People make bad decisions; they think account access is all they need and don’t call the lawyer, or transfer the money.
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If your list of accounts and passwords is part of a well thought out estate plan that you have a habit of reviewing and updating regularly, fine. Keep it. But most are not.
It seems to me that most people read a blog or article on digital estate planning (or even an e-book!) that said: Leave a list of all your internet accounts and passwords for your loved ones to find when you die. So they did.
I submit for your consideration my humble Delete on Death List Solution, because I know for almost certain that one thing about death and the Internet is true. It’s this — a majority of us want to be able to direct some portion of our digital stuff to other humans we choose - AND - we do not want our closest relative to have access to all of our online accounts after we die as a matter of law. We are in the middle. We are straddling things.
Many of us will never leave a list of all our accounts and passwords. Even if we compile it once, we will not update it regularly or ensure it is findable. We will not risk rolling over in our grave should such a list fall into the wrong hands.
Default access to all online accounts via paper trail is not the policy solution or the practical solution any citizen of the internet deserves. However, that does not mean we should do nothing. An inventory is important, if daunting.
So, here is where I suggest you start: create your list of online accounts (push it into a spreadsheet from your password manager if you have that set up), then make a subset of that list to include all the accounts that will be completely worthless when you die. Include the website and the username or email associated on the list.
Title the list: Delete on Death.
Don’t Include Passwords (most companies have a way to request deletion of the accounts of the deceased that does not require anyone to log-in).
Put your Delete on Death List with your worst case scenario documents, or provide it to an individual who you trust to do the deleting on your death as a favor to you and your family.
Take a Deep Breath. Enjoy an ounce of peace of mind.
