Don’t Let Your Digital Assets Disappear: Estate Planning for Crypto, Photos, Music and More
A Google search suggested that approximately one trillion dollars of crypto currency assets have been lost, either to theft or lost passwords. In the digital age, your estate isn’t just real property and bank accounts—it also includes your online world: photos in iCloud, email and cloud files, subscription accounts, and cryptocurrency. Without clear instructions, these assets can be locked behind passwords, erased by provider policies, or simply overlooked.
What Are Digital Assets and Why They Matter
Digital assets are electronic records or accounts you own, control, or have rights to—such as crypto wallets, online banking and payment apps, email, cloud storage, social media, domain names, rewards points, and digital photos and videos. Some have clear dollar value; others are irreplaceable for your family.
Digital assets are typically password-protected, and some (like cryptocurrency) are only reachable with private keys or seed phrases—lose the keys and the value may be gone permanently. Also, many “purchases” are actually licenses (for example, certain music, movie, and e?book libraries), meaning they may not transfer the same way physical property does. The bottom line: if you want your executor or trustee to locate, access, and manage your digital life, you need a plan that covers both the practical access details and the legal authority to use them.
California’s Digital Asset Laws: RUFADAA and “Digital Executors”
California adopted the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA), now in the Probate Code. In plain terms, it allows you to authorize a fiduciary—your executor, trustee, or agent under a power of attorney—to access and manage digital assets after death or incapacity. The key is that this authority must be expressly granted in your estate planning documents. If you don’t clearly name who may act and what they may access, providers often default to privacy rules and their terms of service, and your family may be denied entry even with good intentions.
RUFADAA also recognizes “online tools” built into many platforms—such as Google’s Inactive Account Manager, Facebook/Instagram legacy settings, and Apple’s Digital Legacy. Those settings usually control that specific account, even if your will or trust says something different. If you haven’t set them up, your estate plan language is typically next in line, and then the provider’s default policies apply. That’s why coordinated planning matters: align your platform settings with your legal documents so your wishes are carried out without delay.
Best Practices: How to Protect Your Digital Footprint
Protecting your digital footprint doesn’t require complicated technology—it requires organization, secure access planning, and clear legal authority. Use this checklist:
- Inventory what you have: List key accounts and assets (crypto, banking/payment apps, email, cloud storage, social media, subscriptions, domains, rewards, devices/backups). If someone can’t find it, they can’t manage it.
- Store access information safely: Record where assets are held and which email/username is tied to each account. Avoid leaving passwords in plain text; instead use a password manager, sealed document, or attorney-held instructions so your fiduciary can get access when the time comes.
- Authorize the right person in writing: In your will, trust, and/or power of attorney, name a fiduciary who can handle digital assets and clearly grant permission to access, manage, transfer, or close accounts under California’s RUFADAA framework.
- Use platform legacy settings: Turn on the provider tools (Apple Digital Legacy, Google Inactive Account Manager, social media legacy contacts) and make sure they match your estate plan so the account-specific instructions don’t contradict your broader intent.
Conclusion: Securing Your Digital Legacy
Digital estate planning is no longer optional. If you have crypto, cloud-stored photos, email, custom domain names, or online financial accounts, take time to inventory them, secure the access path, and give your fiduciary clear written authority under California law. With a coordinated plan—your documents plus each platform’s legacy settings—you can protect both financial value and family memories and ensure they pass smoothly to the people you trust.
This column is prepared by Rick Brooks, CFA®, CFP®. Brooks is an owner and senior financial advisor at Blankinship & Foster, LLC, a wealth advisory firm specializing in financial planning and investment management for people preparing for retirement. Brooks can be reached at (858) 755-5166, or by email at rbrooks@bfadvisors.com.
Category: Finance, Technology
