Digital Legacy Planning: Bob and Jessica
In an age dominated by technology, our lives are intricately woven with digital threads that extend beyond the physical realm. When tragedy strikes, as in the case of Bob, a father of two teenagers, and a dedicated husband of Jessica, navigating the complexities of his digital legacy becomes an unexpected challenge for his grieving family.
Bob, a busy software executive, had a busy and fulfilled life with his wife of 18 years Jessica, 16-year-old daughter Parker, and 15-year-old son John. The family had a very busy lifestyle and enjoyed the perks of suburban life in Austin TX. The tragedy struck very suddenly when Bob was killed in a car crush on his way to the airport 5 months ago. Bob’s family was still grieving when Jessica had to address various aspects of making funeral arrangements, notifying the family, and building the picture of his estate. Luckily Bob and his wife Jessica had gone to see lawyers to write up their will professionally about 15 years before his tragic accident, right after having children. However, no one is ever really ready to deal with the everyday requirements of his accounts, especially when grieving. But it was not all she had to do. Throughout his life Bob accumulated a vast array of digital assets. From frequent flyer miles and credit card accounts to social media profiles, his digital footprint reflects his generation. He was very active on all social platforms because of the nature of his job. Jessica faced an avalanche of memories recorded by means of posts coming from Instagram, X, Dropbox and Facebook. Everything had to be addressed and she felt absolutely lost and unprepared.
Their will was designed to plan out what happened to their tangible assets in case of death or incapacity. Tangible assets include things such as bank accounts, real estate, life insurance and retirement accounts. Jessica's biggest challenge was access to these accounts, as they were in the cloud and needed a username and password. Luckily some of the accounts she had passwords to as they were written in ink in a small booklet inside the desk drawer, but this surely did not include all of them. Some passwords were stored online, and some were lost forever.
The next thing she was not prepared for was the huge amount of data that sat live, online; representing her husband as if he were still alive. Social media accounts still send out birthday notices, a sheer reminder which was uncomfortable. The masses of credit cards where he held loyalty points were of significant value. None of these "digital assets” were incorporated into the estate planning.
Many individuals, like Bob, may not realize the importance of addressing their digital legacy alongside traditional estate planning. In fact, 18 years ago when he wrote up his plans with Jessica, their digital footprint was very different than it is today. Financial advisors and lawyers are experts in their respective fields; however, today's estate plans need to evolve just as we have over time by managing and planning for the data trail we leave behind. The takeaway from sharing Jessica's story is that there should always be a designated legacy plan for one's own digital footprint.
