I know, I know. The title of this blog is inaccurate, if not disconcerning: you can't do anything with your digital footprint once you are deceased. But you can prepare a statement, as Adam Ostrow (editor in chief for Mashable) shows in this intruiging TED Talk featured below. Derek K. Miller, a renowned Canadian blogger, died of cancer early May 2011. Before he past away, he summarized his life in a brilliant blogpost on his blog Penmachine: The Last Post.
Here is a part of his last message:
I'm dead and this is my last post to my blog. In advance, I asked that once my body finally shut down from the punishments of my cancer, then my family and friends publish this prepared message I wrote.
Read this story in the Daily Mail.
Your digital footprint remains alive
Miller's last post and Ostrow's TED Talk got me thinking: do we really care about our digital footprint once we have 'perished'? In fact, although you are dead, your digital footprint might very well remain alive. I think it is an important task to decide what the people who are left behind need to do with your 'heritage'.
Digital footprint after you die
Here is what I would recommend:
- Get in control: Talk to your loved ones in advance about what your desires are for your social networking sites and your digital footprint. Delete, archive or have your loved ones post updates on your behalf? You choose!
- Prepare a statement: Learn from Derek K. Miller and prepare a statement. Perhaps you want to share your feelings for others now. Or encourage others to go on with their lifes and cherish each moment. Again, you choose. However, I wouldn't want to suggest to rule on top of your grave, as we say in Dutch. This is not the time to settle scores.
- Don't forget your passwords: With your digital footprint, you might leave behind several - if not numerous - social media and blog publishing accounts. You could try and find all teh content via search engines or dedicated people search services such as 123people. Give your loved ones access to them, and like I said, notify them how to treat the information there.
Impressive digital footprint
Back to the late Derek K. Miller. He left an impressive digital footprint behind. Especially with his now famous Last Post, which received well over 30.000 Facebook likes, almost 3000 tweets, 1201 comments and over 400 Disqus-likes. There is more we can do to remember him, besides reading his post and to learn from his last thoughts. A trust fund has been put in place for his wife and two daughters who were left behind, you can make a donation here.
Image: Some rights reserved by MudflapDC
What are you going to do with your digital footprint after you die? Do you have a last will in place? Or should people have their online content deleted after they have past away? Leave a comment below!