This week’s article is really going to define the generation gap by discussing the future of life after death. Wait, the future… of life after death. Sounds like an oxymoron, right? Well, just like older generations tend to write a will and leave their physical belongings to family and friends now, this generation will start to add a new item: their online belongings. Sound interesting? Or will I bore you to death? 
In recent years, there have been several startup businesses with websites that target this “digital will” market. They allow you as an individual to setup an account and assign executors and heirs to any and/or all of your online accounts that make up the digital “you”. When you pass away, these companies use the account you created to pass login information to the individuals you assigned as heirs through the person or persons that you designated as executor(s).
One of these companies is called Entrustet.com. I’m picking on them because they are based right here in Madison, WI and I use them for my own digital will. There are a bunch more but I can’t think of them off the top of my head right now. If you’d like me to help you dig some more up, let me know.
Like any new business, Entrustet started when they saw a need for this type of service. After reading about a situation where Yahoo! refused to give the password of an email account belonging to a young soldier that died in action in Iraq to his family at their request, they knew that something like this was needed. Companies like Yahoo! tend to take privacy seriously and won’t give passwords or other account information out to just anybody. This is where companies like Entrustet come into play, acting as the “referee” between individuals, their families, and major companies who need to adhere to strict privacy policies.
For more information about Entrustet or to setup your own account, check out their website at https://www.entrustet.com.
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