Accessing Online Accounts of Deceased Relatives

Estate Planning for digital assets and accounts has been a recent focus with states considering, and Delaware passing, laws that allow for relatives to access online accounts after the death of the account holder. One relatively simple option is for an account holder to either give passwords and account information to a trusted person or keep a list of the information in a secure place to be retrieved when needed. However, this method takes both trust and planning. Some common account providers have their own procedures for family members to retrieve digital data of a deceased loved one.

For Facebook accounts, the account can be either deleted or memorialized with proof of death and relation to the deceased. Other social media accounts, such as Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn accounts can be closed through direct contact, proof of identification of the requester, and proof of death of the account holder. To access a relative’s Google account, one may mail or fax their identification and the deceased’s death certificate to request access, but approval is not guaranteed. However, Yahoo mail accounts only offer the ability to close the account, but will not release any emails.

See Mariella Moon, What You Need to Know About Your Digital Life After Death, Engadget, Dec. 10, 2014.

Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.