How to Create a Digital Estate Plan

So much of our lives now exist online. From treasured photos to everyday financial accounts. Digital planning helps safeguard your digital legacy by protecting your accounts, your privacy, and the people you care about most. 

What Is Digital Estate Planning?

You may have heard of traditional estate planning, which manages physical and financial assets such as your home, money, or personal belongings. Digital estate planning applies the same idea to your online life. It’s the process of deciding what happens to your online accounts and digital information such as your email, social media, photos, online banking, subscriptions and files after you pass away or become unable to manage them. 

Digital estate planning fits into a broader estate plan by working alongside wills, trusts and powers of attorney. Together, they ensure that both your physical assets and digital accounts are handled according to your wishes. The goal is to protect your privacy and create a clear digital legacy, making it easier for your loved ones to access, manage or close accounts and take care of what you leave behind. 

What Counts as Digital Assets?

Digital assets include anything you access, use, or own online. This can range from email accounts and social media profiles to cloud storage, subscriptions, online banking and investment logins, and so much more. Some digital assets have clear financial value, while others may have sentimental value, such as family photos or messages. Understanding what counts as a digital asset is an important step in digital asset management and planning for how these items should be handled in the future. 

Why Digital Asset Management Matters for Your Family

Without a digital asset management plan in place, your loved ones may get locked out of your accounts they need to access after you’re gone. This could lead to missed bills, lost photos, accounts becoming inactive, or even an increased risk of identity theft. Adding to the challenge, platform rules may vary and access is not always automatic, even for spouses or close family members. Having a plan to organize your passwords, accounts and instructions ahead of time can spare your loved ones unnecessary stress and protect your digital information when it matters most.

Make a Digital Inventory

Creating a digital inventory is an important first step in any digital estate plan. A simple checklist makes it easier for your loved ones to understand what exists and what should happen to it. Consider including things like: 

• Account name and type (banking, social media, cloud storage, subscriptions, etc.)
• Website/app where the account it accessed
• Purpose of the account
• Where the account lives (personal, work-related, shared or business)
• Who do you want to manage it
• What action should be taken (access, maintain, transfer or delete)

Be sure to review and update this list regularly as accounts change. Store the inventory in a secure location, such as a password manager or encrypted digital vault and avoid placing login details in a will or unprotected document. Keeping this information organized and secure makes digital asset management much easier for the people you trust. 

Choose Who Will Manage Your Digital Assets

Similar to a traditional estate plan, a digital estate plan should name a digital executor or a trusted person to handle your online assets. This person should be organized and trustworthy as they may be responsible for handling sensitive information, including financial accounts. Be sure to leave clear and concise instructions outlining what to delete, memorialize, or transfer. Providing specific guidelines will help alleviate any confusion and help carry out your wishes smoothly, while reducing stress for your loved ones. 

Set Up Legal Permissions and Platform Tools

Many online platforms now offer built-in tools such as legacy contacts or inactive account managers. These tools let you decide who can access or manage your accounts if something happens to you. In addition to these settings, legal documents like a will, trust, or power of attorney can formally authorize someone to access your digital devices or accounts. Keep in mind that because platform policies or laws can vary, it’s a good idea to work with an estate attorney to ensure everything is set up properly and aligns with your estate plan. 

Keep Your Digital Estate Plan Updated

Your digital life can change often, so it’s important to review your plans at least once a year to make sure your accounts are in good order. Checking in after big life moments such as marriage, divorce, birth of a child, starting a new business, or opening new financial accounts. Keeping your digital inventory current is a key part of this process, making it easier for your loved ones to manage. 

Protect Your Digital Legacy Today

Getting started with a digital legacy plan doesn’t have to be complicated. Talk with a Farm Bureau agent or advisor¹ about how digital estate planning can fit into your overall plan today.