How do I include my cyber assets in my estate plan?

Your cyber (or digital) assets may have sentimental and/or economic value, and you should consider including them in your estate plan. Here’s how:

1. Identify your cyber assets. They include (a) domain names, websites, and blogs, (b) photos, videos, and documents stored on sharing sites such as Flickr, YouTube, and Google Docs, (c) e-mail accounts, (d) online bank, credit card, investment, and other such accounts that typically require a password, (e) accounts with online companies such as Facebook, Twitter, and eBay, and (f) documents, spreadsheets, photos, and other such items that are stored on your computers, hard drives, DVDs, smartphones, flash drives, and other offline or online servers or backup servers.
2. Understand which assets are transferable to other persons and which are not. Your domain names, websites, and blogs are transferable under property and copyright laws; however, your online accounts may or may not be transferable, depending on the online site’s terms of service (you may merely have a license). Read all terms of service to understand what can be done with the account upon your death. You will find that many accounts will automatically terminate upon notice of your death, and other accounts, such as one on Facebook, may be put into a “memorial state.”
3. Inventory your cyber assets. List all your assets indicating (a) where they are located, (b) how they are accessed, including URLs, usernames, and passwords, (c) what you wish to have happen to the asset at your death (e.g., transfer to an heir, terminate, memorialize), and (d) who will be responsible for carrying out those wishes (e.g., spouse, executor). Refer to but do not include this inventory in your will, because wills become public and this is private information. Put it in a safe place and let others know of its existence.
4. Include specific bequests of certain valuable cyber assets (domain names, websites, blogs) in your will, and execute powers of attorney for those accounts that will require it.

Source: Broadridge