The US Government Wants you to Write a Social Media Will…

Yes, apparently our US Government wants each of us to put together a “Social Media Will.’  I’m an estate planning attorney in Michigan, and advise clients on how to plan for their assets, including digital assets.  So, when I stumbled upon a blog post by USA.gov, I was intrigued.

Reading the blog post (How and Why You Should Write a Social Media Will), I kinda liked what I saw…

First, they outline how social media is not becoming a large part of everyone’s daily life and the issue of what happens with all that “stuff” if you were to pass away.  Lord knows, I have enough Facebook, Twitter, Email, Flickr, SmugMug accounts that it’s hard for me to keep track, let alone anyone else if something were to happen to me.

Next they outline some steps that should be taken to ensure that these digital assets are handled the way you would want if you were to pass away.  They recommend that just like a traditional last will and testament (or living trust!) handles your affairs for your physical belongings and financial assets, there should be a document that spells out how you want your online identity to be handled as well.

The idea of the social media will, is that like a traditional will, you’ll need to appoint someone you trust as a personal representative/trustee/executor.  That person will be responsible for closing your email addresses, social media profiles, and blogs after you are deceased.  Then that person should take the following steps:

• Review the privacy policies and the terms and conditions of each website where you have a presence.
• State how you would like your profiles to be handled. You may want to completely cancel your profile or keep it up for friends and family to visit. Some sites allow users to create a memorial profile where other users can still see your profile but can’t post anything new.
• Give the social media executor a document that lists all the websites where you have a profile, along with your usernames and passwords.
• Stipulate in your will that the online executor should have a copy of your death certificate. The online executor may need this as proof in order for websites to take any actions on your behalf.

The timing of this was ironic, since just yesterday I blogged about how to manage and find a Deceased Loved One’s Digital Assets.

So, what do you think?  Do you have a “Social Media Will?”