Bereavement brings with it a great deal of administration. There are legal documents to be filed, authorities and service providers to be notified, and increasingly, families are having to decide what happens to their loved ones' social media accounts after they die.
Following the death of a loved one there are many more pressing issues to be dealt with than what should happen to their social media accounts. However, you will eventually have to make some decisions about what should happen to your loved one’s social media.
It is possible to simply leave them, and some people find it comforting to look at their loved one’s social media and remember them. It's important to know, however, that as a live account, you could receive notifications like birthday messages, which could be upsetting. Also, anyone gaining access to the account could make changes, turning a well-meaning memorial into a problem.
You can create a social media memorial to someone who has died
It is possible to memorialise some social media accounts, including Facebook and Instagram. This ensures that posts and pictures can still be seen by family and friends and in some cases they will be able to leave messages. However, the account will be frozen and will be clearly identified as belonging to someone who has died. The account cannot be logged into, keeping it secure. Memorialisation needs to be requested from Meta for Facebook and Instagram Help Centre for Instagram. Evidence such as an obituary is required for memorialising any account.
Memorialised Facebook and Instagram accounts are generally not recommended in other people’s social media feeds, do not send notifications and can’t be altered unless a legacy administrator has been appointed.
You can delete someone’s social media accounts when they die
You can choose to permanently delete the social media accounts of someone who has died. You will need to contact each social media platform directly to request that the account is deleted and prove that the account holder has died by sending a copy of their death certificate. You will also need to prove your own identity and your relationship to the deceased.
It is important to remember that when a social media account is deleted all their photos, posts, and messages will be removed. With so many memories being stored and shared online, downloading social media content before deletion is a good way to protect your loved one’s digital legacy. Each platform provides instructions on how to download content.
You can start to plan your digital legacy now
The process for memorialising or deleting a social media account is specific to each platform.
The Digital Legacy Association is a non-profit organisation working to raise awareness of the importance of digital assets planning and digital legacy safeguarding. Its website offers general guidance on how to delete or memorialise social media accounts.
However, the association says that everyone should think about and make plans for their digital assets and digital legacy in advance. It recommends that everyone who has one or more online accounts should document what sites they use and what they would like to happen to them should something happen to them.
To help people secure their social media legacy, the association has developed a Social Media Will template that is free to download, save and print. Although not legally binding, the Social Media Will can be used to help make your digital wishes clear.
