How to Handle a Parent's Digital Accounts After They Die

A step-by-step guide for families to manage deceased parent's online accounts, passwords, and digital assets. HowTo: Family Edition: family how-tos that actual…

  1. Gather what you can find immediately. Start by looking for any written passwords, account information, or devices your parent used regularly. Check for notebooks, sticky notes near their computer, or password managers on their phone or computer. If they used a password manager like LastPass or 1Password, this will make your job much easier. Also locate their main devices - phone, tablet, computer - and see if you can access them. Many people save passwords in their browser or have auto-login enabled.
  2. Handle the most urgent accounts first. Focus on accounts that involve money or sensitive information before anything else. This includes banks, credit cards, investment accounts, PayPal, Venmo, and any online shopping accounts with saved payment methods. Contact these companies directly with a copy of the death certificate to close or transfer accounts. Also prioritize email accounts since these often hold the keys to resetting other passwords.
  3. Contact major tech companies. Each platform has its own process for handling deceased users' accounts. For Facebook and Instagram, you can memorialize the account or request deletion by submitting their forms along with a death certificate. Google has an 'Inactive Account Manager' feature, but if your parent didn't set it up, you'll need to submit a request with documentation. Apple requires a court order for most account access. Twitter/X allows account deactivation by family members with proper documentation. LinkedIn will remove profiles when notified of a death.
  4. Deal with subscription services and recurring payments. Look through bank and credit card statements for recurring charges to identify subscription services. Common ones include Netflix, Spotify, Amazon Prime, newspaper subscriptions, cloud storage, and monthly delivery services. Contact each company to cancel subscriptions. Some may require a death certificate, while others just need you to call from the phone number on file or access the account directly.
  5. Secure and preserve what matters. Before closing accounts, save any photos, documents, or communications you want to keep. Download photos from Google Photos, iCloud, or Facebook. Save important emails or documents to your own storage. Consider whether family members might want access to things like music playlists or digital photos before you close accounts permanently.
  6. Address digital assets and cryptocurrency. If your parent had cryptocurrency, digital investments, or valuable online assets, these require special attention. Look for accounts with companies like Coinbase, Robinhood, or other investment platforms. Check for digital wallets or cryptocurrency storage devices. These assets can be valuable but may require legal help to access. Don't assume digital assets are worthless - some people have significant digital holdings their families don't know about.
  7. Clean up remaining accounts over time. Once you've handled the urgent accounts, you can work through less critical ones like shopping sites, forums, gaming accounts, or hobby-related platforms. Many of these can simply be left inactive, but closing them reduces the chance of identity theft. Keep a list of what you've closed and what's still open. This process can take several months, and that's normal.