Improve legacy settings or millions will lose the digital assets and memories of their loved ones to the cloud, says STEP

Monday, 25 September 2023
  • STEP’s new Digital Legacy Scorecard rates the legacy settings for ten major cloud service providers, including Apple, Instagram and Google. 
  • It has revealed that the basic requirements for legacy settings are not being met by any of the major providers.
  • Only 3% of the population have used existing digital legacy tools offered by these providers.
  • As more and more aspects of our lives are online and digital assets increasingly feature in estate planning and administration, the need for comprehensive legacy tools will only get more urgent.

Release date: Under Embargo Monday 25 September 2023, 00:01am

Leading cloud service providers, including Apple, Instagram and Google, have work to do to improve their legacy settings to better protect millions of people from losing digital assets and memories, according to STEP, the professional body for inheritance advisors.

STEP’s Digital Legacy Scorecard rates cloud service providers on their legacy settings to help address this issue.

Cloud-based accounts can contain crypto-assets, cherished photos, videos and the contents of social and email accounts. Currently, the extent to which these providers have made provision for what happens to their users’ accounts in the event of their death or incapacity, does not meet the basic requirements of what is needed.

According to STEP, this is leaving some families in great distress and struggling to access the digital assets and memories of a loved one when they pass away or become incapacitated. In some cases, relatives are having to get a court order to gain access, which can be costly, complex and time consuming.

Ten major providers were initially assessed through STEP’s Digital Legacy Scorecard: Amazon; Apple; Coinbase; Dropbox; Facebook; Google; Instagram; LinkedIn; X (Twitter); and Yahoo.

While there are some encouraging examples of good practice – with Facebook and Google scoring highest – STEP found that more needed to be done to improve legacy functionality across the board. The results demonstrated a lack of a comprehensive approach.

Furthermore, incapacity is largely left out of the express provisions and the handling of the distribution of digital assets. With an ageing population and increasing incidences of dementia, for example, this is clearly an area that needs attention.

Through its ‘Protect Your Digital Memories’ campaign, STEP has been calling on the public to plan what will happen to their digital assets, share their wishes and use legacy tools, where available, to protect their digital memories. STEP has also been urging digital service providers – Google, Apple and others – to better support this as only 3% of the population have used existing digital legacy tools provided, and more than half of UK adults (57%) have not made any plans to pass on their digital assets.*

Mark Walley, Chief Executive of STEP, said: ‘STEP members, including estate planning practitioners are seeing significant and increasing demand for advice. Bereaved families find themselves locked out or unable to close accounts – leading to the loss of precious memories and increased risk of identity theft.

‘With so many people living so much of their lives online now, cloud service providers need to improve their legacy settings, and provide more support so that people can better plan and protect their digital estates.’

The basic requirements rated by STEP’s Digital Legacy Scorecard include:

  • Having clear and publicly displayed criteria for determining what events trigger an account to be deemed inactive.
  • Making provision for account holders to pre-determine options that allow access for a designated recipient or a fiduciary in the event of death or incapacity.
  • The amount of information and publicity present in the platform to promote user awareness of this type of planning feature.

The full ratings and further details about the Scorecard can be found at: https://www.step.org/digital-legacy-scorecard

To find out more about the Digital Memories campaign and practical tips on how to protect your digital assets and memories, visit: https://memories.step.org/

ENDS

For more information, please contact Liz Skinner, Communications Manager, STEP, email liz.skinner@step.org or call + 44 3752 3706 or please contact Ellen Carroll at Nellie PR. Email: ellen@nelliepr.co.uk Tel: +44 (0) 1392 927746 or Mob: +44 (0) 7790 631 547.

Note to Editor

* https://www.step.org/research-reports/digital-assets-call-action

In its 2021 survey, STEP found that found that estate practitioners and their clients were increasingly struggling to access and close digital accounts on the death of a family member.

Nearly 60% had dealt with questions from clients about digital assets and more than 90% expected this to increase in the future. Nearly a quarter of the respondents had clients who have experienced difficulties accessing the digital assets of a family member, causing significant distress and frustration in many cases. To view the research visit: https://www.step.org/research-reports/digital-assets-call-action

About STEP, the professional body for inheritance advisors

STEP is the global professional association for practitioners who specialise in family inheritance and succession planning. We have more than 21,000 members in 96 countries. STEP works to improve public understanding of the issues families face in this area and promotes education and high professional standards among its members. STEP members help families plan for their futures, from drafting wills to issues surrounding international families, protecting the vulnerable, family businesses and philanthropic giving. Find out more at www.step.org