Deliberating on what needs to be done in the event of your passing may be morbid, but it is critical if you would like your last wishes to be adhered to. As long as you are an adult, it is crucial for you to have a lawyer draw up a will that will stipulate your final wishes and determine how your estate will be divided. However, not many people put into consideration their digital legacy.

Social media is undeniably an integral part of day-to-day life. Whether you have one social media account to stay in contact with loved ones or have numerous accounts for both personal and business reasons, it is essential to figure out what you would like to happen to your online presence once you pass away. The following are the primary options available to you when it comes to determining your digital legacy with the leading social media platforms.

Memorialisation of your social media account

A choice many people opt for when it comes to their digital legacy is having their social media account memorialised. By choosing for memorialisation, your profile functions to provide your family members and friends with a digital space where they can post remembrances and condolence messages. If you would like to opt for memorialisation of your social media account, you would have to decide on who would be best suited to being your legacy contact.

This contact would have to be on the same social media platform as you and they would be tasked with managing the account. If you are concerned about privacy, you can limit the capabilities they have of your profile for example not authorising them to access private messages.

Deletion of your social media account

An alternative to memorialisation that you could choose is the permanent deletion of your social media account. With this option, you would have to communicate with the social media platform beforehand that in the event of your demise you would like your entire profile deleted from the platform. One thing to note about deletion is that your profile will never be able to be reactivated.

You may opt to have a legacy contact with this alternative, but take note that this contact will not be able to access your account. Another thing to bear in mind is that loved ones can choose to have your social media account deleted after your passing. However, they would have to produce documentation as proof of being associated with you such as a death certificate.