Here’s a new thing to worry about: what happens to your Facebook statuses from 2009 after you’ve left this plane? Do they linger on forever and become your legacy? Who manages them?
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This week, WBBM Newsradio’s Rob Hart spoke with Paul Hochman, president of Humongous Media, about “digital estate planning,” in the age of social media.
“You cannot neglect this because, in fact, when you create a sort of a life online, that life online… it lasts, digitally speaking, generally forever,” said Hochman. “But, what that means is that some sensitive data – financial information, including in some cases value, like say crypto and images and all kinds of other stuff – stays up.”
It’s a bit of a daunting thought, especially as we spend more and more time online and have an ever-growing list of accounts. That’s why there’s now something called a “digital executor” who you can appoint.
“If you do not have a digital executor or at least designate one in the will, you're really leaving yourself open to problems,” said Hochman. There are also other ways to keep your digital footprint tidy in the event that one unexpectedly shuffles off their mortal coil.
“Start with an asset inventory,” said Hochman. “What do you have out there? Crypto, passwords to your financial to your savings and so forth? But I’ll just give you an easy example of a way to help: Google has something called Inactive Account Manager. It’s a feature that lets users decide what happens to their data, like Gmail, Photos, and Drive.”
Hart also asked about social media accounts that remain up as memorials after people pass away. Is that a safe way to remember someone? While Hochman said that loved ones should just note that the longer people’s faces and information are up online, the more likely it is that they could be used for anything from artificial intelligence to scams.