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๐Ÿ‡ฆ๐Ÿ‡บ Australia /Culture & Society

What happens to your social media account in its afterlife?

From ABC Australia · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Named sources Context piece
  • Many people do not plan for the management of their social media accounts after death, leading to potential loss of digital assets.
  • Platforms like Meta offer memorialization options, while others rely on user reports to handle deceased accounts.
  • Experts advise managing digital legacies as part of 'life admin' to preserve sentimental or monetary value.

Five years after losing her husband, Marija Milisavljeviฤ‡ struggles with the digital remnants of his life, particularly his Facebook account. Despite attempts to memorialize it, her applications were unsuccessful, leaving her feeling stressed about preserving memories.

I miss everything about him, I miss his presence โ€ฆ just the comfort of having my person in the room.

โ€” Marija Milisavljeviฤ‡Milisavljeviฤ‡ described her grief and the importance of remembering her late husband.

Bjรธrn Nansen, an associate professor at the University of Melbourne, highlights that people rarely consider their digital afterlife. He warns that failing to manage digital legacies before death can lead to the inaccessibility of virtual assets, which may hold sentimental or monetary value, such as social media videos, cryptocurrencies, or email archives.

It still remains a pretty marginal thing.

โ€” Bjรธrn NansenNansen commented on how infrequently people consider their digital legacy.

Estate lawyer Lisa Berte notes a lack of awareness regarding these digital issues, which can create problems for the bereaved. "People aren't quite aware that these issues can become an issue once you pass away," she stated. Many do not consider social media profiles as having significant value, often overlooking them in estate planning.

There is a real stress over not being able to keep the memories alive.

โ€” Marija Milisavljeviฤ‡Milisavljeviฤ‡ expressed the emotional toll of potentially losing digital memories.

Social media companies are aware of mortality. Meta, Facebook's parent company, allows users to designate what happens to their profiles post-mortem, turning them into memorialized accounts. Other platforms like LinkedIn, Yahoo, and X (formerly Twitter) require users to report a deceased person's account before taking action. Facebook pioneered account memorialization in 2009, offering a way to preserve or close down accounts after a user's death.

You need to think ahead.

โ€” Bjรธrn NansenNansen advised proactive management of digital assets.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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