Each day we log on to many online accounts without thinking how effortlessly we manage our digital lives. Consider the size of your online presence. You probably have a Facebook account which details your daily life and personal history. You have one or more email accounts which contain a wealth of your personal and business communications. There are photos, music and important documents you have stored in the cloud; online banking accounts; frequent flyer miles and more.

With our ever-growing presence of online accounts, it is becoming essential to keep track and document pins and passwords so your family can have access to important electronic records after you are gone.

Consider the story of a 67 year old woman named Claudia whose husband, Raymond, passed away suddenly. Not having the password to her husband’s email account turned a difficult time into a financial nightmare. Claudia tried to guess the password to her husband’s email but without any luck. The email company would not reset the password or grant her access, saying their user agreement terminated upon the account holder’s death. Claudia did not know that Raymond had signed up for online bill pay for everything from the electricity bill to the car insurance and mortgage, but the monthly payments were not being automatically deducted from the checking account. The bills were being sent to her husband’s email account which she could not access. As a result, late payments piled up and she received many cancellation notices. It took many stressful phone calls to resolve the situation and it had a lasting impact on her credit.

Make sure a trusted family member can find the usernames and passwords for your online accounts.

Spell out how you want your online accounts to be handled after death as an addendum to your Will. You should:

1. Appoint a family member or executer to handle your online accounts.
This person should be someone who is willing to put in the time and effort to close or memorialize your accounts and is capable of protecting your sensitive information. This person should be technical enough to make changes to your accounts and trustworthy to carry out your wishes.

2. Document how you want your profiles and accounts to be handled.
Do you want your Facebook account to be deactivated or would you rather have your Timeline memorialized? Do you want your email account deleted?

3. Provide a list of all the websites and pins/passwords (or a location where they can be found).
The best plan is probably the simplest. Just make a list of your user names, passwords, Pins, and related accounts and store it in a safe place. There are secure online storage services but they usually charge an annual fee. Also, don’t store it in your bank safe-deposit box. Many banks will not allow access to the box until the Will has been probated. I store mine in a fire and flood proof safe at home and keep it updated.

Please be certain to include the passcode to your phone on the list of pins/passwords. So many of us keep all our contacts on our phones and our families will need that information when we are gone!

This is such an important element in your Family Legacy Drawer. Start working on your list today. Your family will be forever grateful!