The digital footprint on the Internet is the trace we leave when browsing the web, everything we share on our social networks (photos, videos, statuses, etc.)
But what happens to all this data if someone dies? And what about everything we left in the cloud?
We are faced with a legal vacuum, there is no regulation to regulate this. Catalonia has been a pioneer in approving a bill on digital wills but there is still much to be done.
The digital heir
On February 28, 2017, the Catalan government approved a bill on women database digital wills that will allow citizens to designate their digital heirs in their wills to claim from companies the information posted by the deceased person.
This bill recognises the heritage value of digital footprints and provides the option of inheriting digital data and designating a person in charge of managing this legacy, either to preserve it, modify it or delete it.
This bill is inspired by France, as it allows users to decide on the fate of the information they publish online and equates virtual goods with real goods.
But reclaiming passwords from a deceased user can be difficult or impossible. Facebook can only pass on the data to another person if there is a legal mandate or a legal agreement. On Twitter, you have to authorize someone or a verified family member. Pinterest does not give out the login information to anyone.
LinkedIn says it will provide information in accordance with the law or if there is a very important legal requirement, while Google says that in rare cases it may provide account information to an authorized representative.
Some of these companies have their own regulations regarding this issue:
Facebook
On this social network you have two options: either you can turn the profile of the deceased into a memorial account, for which you must inform the social network of the death of that person. Or you can appoint a person to manage your Facebook account when you are no longer there.