How to Wipe Away Someone's Digital Identity after They Pass Away

We live in an era where everyone has some kind of presence on the Internet. Even if people aren’t active on social media, their photos and videos are always saved in iCloud or Google Photos. What happens to all this data when someone passes away? 

There are ways in which all the stored information can be removed completely after a person’s death. Read on to learn how.

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Inactive Account Manager in Google Accounts

This feature allows users to allocate someone they trust who can enter their account. However, the allocated contact cannot gain access to the account at any time. The access will be allowed only if the account in question has been inactive for a definite period of time. The Inactive Account Manager allows the user to choose this duration of inactivity, which may be three, six, or 12 months.

‍Legacy Contact on Facebook

In the legacy contact idea on Facebook, users can choose someone to take care of their profile after their demise. The person chosen as the legacy contact can decide what needs to be done with the deceased user’s profile. He/she can either request Facebook to delete the account or add a pinned post that informs people why the account in question is not active anymore.

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‍Memorialised Account on Instagram

On Instagram, a deceased person’s account can be memorialised when a valid request is raised. Once an account is memorialised, the word ‘Remembering’ appears beside the user’s name. No one can log in to this account, and the posts (photos, reels, and videos) remain visible to the people they were shared with. Also, these accounts stop appearing in certain places, such as the ‘Explore’ tab. An immediate family member can also request the removal of the account completely. 

‍Legacy Contact on Apple

Apple also offers a Legacy Contact feature. iPhones have this feature in ‘Settings’, under the option ‘Password and Security’. A Legacy Contact on Apple is able to access photos, messages, notes, files, downloaded applications, etc. But he/she cannot gain access to passwords and payment information. 

‍Removal of a Deceased Person’s Account on LinkedIn

LinkedIn allows a connection of a deceased user to contact the team and request the removal of the account. As confirmation, the person who contacts LinkedIn will need to provide the user’s full name, URL to the profile, email address, date of demise, and a copy of the death certificate.

‍Other Options

Apart from the above-mentioned options, users can also create digital wills with the help of websites such as After Note and Secure Safe. 

• On After Note, people can save their login details for different online accounts in their digital wills. After saving these details, they are required to assign three trustees who will be allowed to view this data after the demise of the person.
• In a similar manner, users can store passwords of a maximum of 50 accounts on Secure Safe. These accounts can then be accessed by a chosen person.

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