Wills and trusts traditionally provide the roadmap to how houses, bank accounts, and heirlooms will be distributed. But in today’s on-line connected world, there’s a growing category of assets many older adults overlook: digital property.
From email accounts and social media profiles to online banking, cloud photo albums, and purchased ebooks, music and movies, our lives are increasingly stored in passwords and pixels. For people over 60, the question is becoming urgent: What happens to your digital life when you’re gone?
The “digital inheritance” dilemma isn’t just about sentimental items like family photos or Facebook albums. It also involves practical and financial assets:
- Online banking and investment accounts with paperless statements.
- Recurring bills set to auto-pay through an online portal.
- Cloud storage accounts holding important documents.
- Cryptocurrency wallets accessible only with private keys.
Without proper planning, these assets can be lost, locked, or tied up in lengthy legal battles. In some cases, heirs don’t even know the accounts exist until late notices or suspicious charges appear.
Laws surrounding digital assets are still catching up to technology being used today. Some platforms allow you to designate a “legacy contact” who can manage your account after death, but others have strict privacy rules that prevent even a spouse from accessing information without a court order.
For example, Apple, Google, and Facebook all have policies for posthumous account management, but each works differently—and only if you set them up ahead of time. Without those arrangements, surviving family members may face months of legal paperwork just to retrieve a single document or close an account.
For people over 60, the challenge is two-fold. First, many have decades’ worth of digital files scattered across multiple devices, accounts, and cloud services. Second, they may not realize how tightly those assets are locked behind security systems designed to protect them from hackers—but which also lock out loved ones in a crisis.
It’s a problem that hits home for people like Carol, 72, who lost her husband unexpectedly. “He handled all of our finances online,” she says. “It took me almost a year to get access to some accounts because I didn’t have the right passwords. We missed payments, and I had to hire a lawyer just to prove I was entitled to the information.”
The stakes aren’t always financial. Family members often hope to recover personal emails, voice messages, or photos from a loved one’s phone or cloud account. When access is denied, those memories can be lost forever. For some, that’s as heartbreaking as losing a treasured heirloom.
While the legal and technological landscape is complex, there are proactive steps older adults can take to protect their digital legacy:
- Make a Digital Asset Inventory – List all accounts, subscriptions, and important files, including where they’re stored and how they’re accessed.
- Use a Password Manager – Store login details in a secure program that allows you to share access with a trusted contact.
- Set Up Legacy Contacts – On platforms like Google, Apple, and Facebook, designate someone who can manage or download your data after your death.
- Include Digital Assets in Your Will – Work with a reputable elder-law attorney to specify who inherits what, and ensure your executor has the legal right to access those accounts.
- Back Up Important Files – Store copies of crucial documents and photos on a physical drive kept in a safe place.
Talking about digital inheritance can feel awkward—much like discussing traditional estate planning—but it’s a gift to loved ones. A few conversations and a bit of preparation can spare them months of stress and uncertainty.
As technology becomes even more entwined with daily life, the “digital inheritance” dilemma won’t disappear. For older adults, addressing it now ensures that memories, assets, and important records don’t vanish with a forgotten password.
Your physical possessions aren’t the only things worth passing down. In the digital age, your legacy also lives online—and it deserves the same care and attention as the rest of your estate.