Social Media Afterlife
When you write your will, you will spend a lot of time cataloging all of your possessions and thinking about how to distribute them. The obvious things would be physical assets like real estate, cars, and money. But what about your digital assets, like your social media accounts? What happens to your social media accounts after you die?
What is a Digital Asset?
As this Nolo article puts it, a digital asset is an electronic record that you own, license, or control. That definition includes many things, such as the photos in your iCloud, your blog, or the username for your bank account. But let’s concentrate on one particular kind of digital asset: your social media accounts.
Social media is many things at once: a diary, photo album, home movies, and a chat log. Handing all that over in digital form to someone else isn’t as simple as leaving a book in your home.
Until very recently, there were no laws governing how to administer a deceased person’s social media. In the US, we now have the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act. This law gives your executor access to your social media accounts – but only if you explicitly state that you want to give them access.
Your will is released to the public after you die, so never put your social media handles and passwords there. Instead, put all the information about your social media accounts into a letter of last instruction. It’s not legally binding like a will, but it can be used to give your family and friends information without turning it into a public record.
You may decide that you don’t want to give anyone any access, and that’s your right. If you do want to give someone access to your social media accounts, here’s how. Keep in mind each company has different processes and different rules, but all of them require your loved ones to submit proof of your demise. Here is a breakdown of some of the most popular networks.
Meta (Facebook and Instagram)
Meta is the company that owns Facebook and Instagram. Of all the social media companies, they offer the most options for handling your accounts. If you choose to keep your account active after your death, it will be turned into a memorialized profile. This will prevent your profile from showing up in friends suggestions and birthday reminders.
To access memorialization options, click on icon in the upper right-hand corner. On the Facebook website, it will be your profile picture; in the Facebook app on your phone, it will be three horizontal lines. Select the Settings and Privacy option, then Settings. Open the Meta Accounts Center and select Personal details.
The most important thing to do for your Facebook account is to appoint a legacy contact. Basically, a legacy contact is a person who has permission to tell Meta what to do with your Facebook account after you’re gone. That person can maintain your memorialized account or delete it. Keep in mind that your legacy contact can see all of your posts, even the ones with the privacy setting set to Only Me.
A memorialized Instagram account is similar to a Facebook account, except that it cannot be edited. There is no legacy contact for Instagram. One of your immediate family members or executor must inform Instagram of your death, then make a request to turn your account into a memorial.
Twitter/X
Twitter will not allow anyone to log into your account or make any changes. Your family member or executor must make a request to close your account. Then they will have to provide documents such as ID and a death certificate.
TikTok
What about TikTok? Unfortunately, TikTok’s parent company Bytedance does not have an official policy on what to do with accounts opened by someone who is now deceased. Your best bet is to give your login details to someone you trust. The other option is to contact TikTok support.
No one wants to think about death or imagine dying. But planning ahead can save your loved ones and heirs a little bit of grief.
