October 19, 2009 , 5:59 am The Digital Afterlife
By Jenna Wortham Internet Protocol Columnist NY Times http://gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/19/dealing-with-the-digital-afterlife-and-morning-after-messaging/?ref=technology In this edition, we’re helping readers plan for the digital afterlife. As always, if you need help with a dilemma unique to the digital era, e-mail me or tweet your queries to me and I’ll do what I can to help you resolve them. Not to be morbid, but I have a lot of private information and details stored on my computer — in various Google Chat logs, e-mail and social networking accounts — that I wouldn’t want to be revealed when I log off for good. Who should I consult or what do I need to do to ensure my cache is cleared and e-mail and social networking sites accounts are deleted when I die? It may be slightly unpleasant to think about, but if the mere thought of your partner discovering your lifelong, VIP membership to World of Warcraft mortifies you, then its probably a good idea to consider a living online will. There are services such as Legacy Locker, AssetLock and Deathswitch that promise to help deal with your digital remains, but many of them charge an annual fee and there’s no guarantee that the companies will outlast your lifetime. A better solution, says Adele McAlear, a marketing expert and technical consultant who has led sessions on dealing with virtual legacies, is to appoint someone as your digital executor who is responsible for cleaning up your accounts, clearing your browser cache, deleting secret e-mails and trashing appropriate files. “If you don’t have a trusted friend who can fulfill this role,” she said, “you could leave the task to a lawyer or notary as part of your regular will. But, depending on the nature of your secret activities, this may not be viable, for instance, if you are using your online world for illegal actions.” Ms. McAlear recommends leaving your final instructions as an encrypted file on your computer or place them in a sealed envelope or safety deposit box. “Just make sure that your digital executor knows where to look and will remember the password,” she said. In addition, keep an inventory of all your log-ins and passwords for all your accounts, such as e-mail, social networks, photo- and video-sharing sites, blogs, Web sites, forums, online gaming, Skype, IM, PayPal, eBay and so on. Be sure to specify what you would like to be done with your digital legacy. Do you want your accounts closed? Status changed? Avatars removed? If you have a blog or Web site and you want it to live on after you’ve passed, you should make financial arrangements to pay for hosting, Ms. McAlear said. As a final word of advice, Ms. McAlear says to be selective in the person you appoint as a digital executor. “You would do best to choose someone who is Internet savvy and understands how social networks and online accounts function,” she said. -- ================================ George Antunes, Political Science Dept University of Houston; Houston, TX 77204 Voice: 713-743-3923 Fax: 713-743-3927 Mail: antunes at uh dot edu *********************************** * POST TO [email protected] * *********************************** Medianews mailing list [email protected] http://lists.etskywarn.net/mailman/listinfo/medianews
