Life after death. Does your email die with you!?
Piotr Krupa
Have you ever read the Privacy Policy when you create an email account with an ISP, or on Facebook and MySpace? Do you just skim the page, thinking it’s nothing really important or useful? Let’s consider an intriguing question published recently on news.com.au: Have you ever wondered what happens to your emails after you’re gone? How long are they active…and are they stored for awhile?
Now we’re not trying to be morbid, but we are very interested in email security and regulations, and we honestly didn’t know the answer. CAN someone send email from your account or read your private emails if you’re not around to object?
Here’s what we discovered: it all depends on the privacy policy of the ISP or social media site where you had your accounts. Unfortunately, they vary wildly, and some have their own ideas about how to keep you “virtually alive” after your demise.
For example: Internet giants like Google and Microsoft have a policy of keeping your data after you die and letting your next of kin or the executor of your estate access it. However, when you open your account there is no way to opt out if you want to keep your emails confidential after you die!
This means that when you release this mortal coil, your emails live on. In fact, you could still “receive” emails (including very private messages) which could be read by your kin or executor!
Do have your attention now? So let’s look at how the biggest email providers and social media sites handle this issue in case you want to make some changes before it’s, you know, too late:
· Hotmail − Deletes email accounts if they are not used after 270 days. However, if you die, your next of kin would be able to access your account within that period by providing ID and your death certificate.
· Gmail − Also allows the next of kin to apply for access, however, in addition to ID and the death certificate, the person would need to provide proof of an email conversation between them and the deceased.
· Yahoo! – The strictest of them all! They let the users’ next of kin request that the account be closed, but will not give them access to it. They advise users who don’t want their emails shared after death to include it in their wills.
The issue is handled with a bit more variety on the most popular social sites. For instance:
· MySpace – Their privacy policy doesn’t say much about “deceased user” situations, however MySpace doesn’t automatically delete profiles after a period of inactivity, either. They will remove a deceased user’s profile at the family’s request.
· Facebook − This is really interesting! Facebook offers a service called Memorialization that allows family members to retain a profile of the deceased former user as a virtual tribute. The profile would be locked and all private information simultaneously removed.
You have to admit, it might be worth thinking about! Let us know your views about any of the policies and the issue in general. After you pass, would YOU like your messages to live on…online?
Tags
Social Media, autoresponder, autoresponders, email, email marketing, list building, marketing, news, newsletter, privacy policy
November 16th, 2009 at 4:31 pm
This was a different angle and interesting! Thanks for sharing.
November 17th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
I had given this no thought at all.
But I will certainly looking at what happens to my online social presence after death now.
Thank you for your thought provoking article.
November 17th, 2009 at 1:16 pm
This is a good thought, never thought about this before.
November 17th, 2009 at 1:49 pm
Access to email after your demise could be useful if you had an online business that you wanted to pass on to your next of kin – this could enable them to pick up the various strands of the business.
November 17th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
hey; thank you
November 17th, 2009 at 3:46 pm
I had never even given this a thought…I certainly wouldn’t want my e-mails to be accessed after I die, just on principle.
Thanks for the info – I’ll certainly be looking in to the policies of my e-mail providers.
November 17th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
I recently received an email from the sister of a friend who had died suddenly. She was snooping in her sister’s email after her death and replied to me asking me about the content of my message. I found it really disturbing. At the same time I understand the family’s desire to recover any shred of the person they lost, especially when it was a sudden death.
November 17th, 2009 at 5:13 pm
I hadn’t thought of the implications of my death and how this would affect access to personal email accounts being used to accept business emails that could be frozen or inaccessible. Makes me realise I would be better transferring these accounts to a company.
November 17th, 2009 at 6:12 pm
I’ve never thought about it one way or another. I try to live my life as an open book and will not be writing e-mail I would’t want anyone or everyone to read.
Since the internet, we have all moved into glass houses. We should always consider what we say and what we show before we say or do it.
November 17th, 2009 at 6:17 pm
i want to live but i no want to in tireness or in difficult .
the life after death better the life in nothing or in sad.
November 17th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
Very interesting post! I think I will make a mental note to include something about that in my will so my executor has access to my email and my websites…
November 18th, 2009 at 5:17 am
That’s quite the information! I guess I’m one of the lucky ones that don’t have a concern in the world about their email. I never place anything in e-mail content that would cause embarrassment to myself or anybody else. I would suppose that if you were to have questionable content in your emails, you might not want anybody else to read it other than the recipient. I know that your information will be very thought provoking to many who read it. It really behooves us to pay attention to how we express ourselves in emails.
November 18th, 2009 at 9:17 am
You ppl think me on this, Email will be closed as yahoo doing it and in social media Facebook is doing great while starting the service called Memorialization.
November 18th, 2009 at 9:40 pm
I’ve never thought about it. I don’t want anyone reading my private emails. Sounds like a good idea to include it in a will.
November 19th, 2009 at 7:37 am
ALSO -may be read in this messege so may be cheerful -I guess I’m one of the lucky ones that don’t have a concern in the world about their email. I never place anything in e-mail content that would cause embarrassment to myself or anybody else. I would suppose that if you were to have questionable content in your emails, you might not want anybody else to read it other than the recipient. I know that your information will be very thought provoking to many who read it. It really behooves us to pay attention to how we express ourselves in emails.