What Happens to Digital Assets and Online Accounts After Death?

Digital assets are an increasingly significant part of modern estates, yet they are often overlooked or dealt with too slowly. Cryptocurrency can be lost permanently. Online accounts can continue charging subscriptions for months. Social media profiles can be accessed or misused. This guide explains what counts as a digital asset, how to find what exists, and what to do with it.

What Counts as a Digital Asset?

Digital assets cover a much wider range than most people realise. For estate administration purposes, the main categories are:

Financial digital assets

• Cryptocurrency (Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other coins and tokens)
• Online bank accounts (Monzo, Starling, Revolut, and similar)
• PayPal and other online payment accounts
• Online investment platforms (Freetrade, Trading 212, eToro, and others)
• Online gambling accounts with balances
• Loyalty points and air miles
• Online business accounts (Amazon seller accounts, Etsy shops, Shopify stores)

Non-financial digital assets

• Email accounts
• Social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, TikTok)
• Digital media libraries (iTunes, Amazon Kindle, Google Play books, games)
• Domain names and websites
• Cloud storage (Google Drive, iCloud, OneDrive, Dropbox)
• Subscription services (Netflix, Spotify, Adobe, and others)

Not all of these have monetary value, but they all require attention. Financial accounts need to be collected and included in the estate. Non-financial accounts need to be memorialised, deleted, or cancelled to avoid ongoing charges and protect the deceased's privacy.

Cryptocurrency: Treat It as a Real Asset

Cryptocurrency is a genuine asset with real monetary value, and it must be treated accordingly for probate and inheritance tax purposes. The value at the date of death is included in the estate valuation.

The critical challenge with cryptocurrency is access. Cryptocurrency is controlled by private keys, which are essentially very long passwords. If the private keys are not found, the cryptocurrency is permanently and irrecoverably lost. There is no customer service team and no way to recover access without the keys.

As executor, your priority should be:

1. Search for private keys in physical form (written on paper, stored on a USB drive, printed as a QR code)
2. Check for hardware wallets (small physical devices that store keys)
3. Look for software wallets on the deceased's computer or phone
4. Check for accounts with cryptocurrency exchanges (Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, and others), which hold the keys on the user's behalf
5. Check email for exchange registration confirmations

If you find cryptocurrency but cannot access it, a specialist cryptocurrency recovery service may be able to help, though success is not guaranteed. Value the cryptocurrency at the date of death exchange rate and include it in the estate.

Online Bank Accounts and Payment Platforms

Online banks such as Monzo, Starling, and Revolut handle bereavement notifications and account closures in the same way as traditional banks. Contact their bereavement teams directly, provide a death certificate and proof of your authority as executor, and they will freeze the account and arrange to transfer any balance to the estate.

PayPal accounts with a balance need to be closed and funds returned. Contact PayPal's customer support and be prepared to provide supporting documentation including the death certificate and your authority as executor. The process can be slow.

Online investment platforms should be contacted in the same way as traditional investment platforms. They will transfer holdings or sell them and pay the proceeds to the estate, depending on the instructions you give.

Social Media: Memorialisation vs Deletion

Different social media platforms handle the death of a user differently. Most offer two options: memorialisation (the account remains visible but in a changed state) or deletion.

Platform	Options	Who can request
Facebook / Instagram	Memorialise or remove the account	Family member or nominated legacy contact
LinkedIn	Remove the profile	Family member or representative
X (Twitter)	Deactivate the account	Immediate family member or executor
TikTok	Remove the account	Family member

All platforms require proof of death (usually a death certificate) and proof of your relationship to the deceased. As executor, you can act in this capacity. The family may have a preference about memorialisation versus deletion, so discuss it with them before acting.

Email Accounts

Email accounts are generally not transferable. Providers such as Google (Gmail) and Microsoft (Outlook) do not give surviving family members or executors access to the deceased's email, citing privacy and their terms of service. Some providers allow a trusted contact or legacy access feature to be set up in advance, but if this was not done, access is typically not possible.

What you can do is request that the account be closed. Google has a process for family members and legal representatives to request removal of an account. Closing the account prevents it from being used or accessed inappropriately.

As executor, search the deceased's email account if you can access it (for example, if they were logged in on a device you have access to) for evidence of other accounts, financial relationships, or digital assets.

Online Subscriptions: Cancel to Avoid Ongoing Charges

Subscription services such as Netflix, Spotify, Amazon Prime, Adobe Creative Cloud, and others will continue charging the payment card on file until cancelled. These are a liability of the estate and should be cancelled as soon as possible.

Check the deceased's bank statements for recurring charges. Cancel each subscription by contacting the provider online or by phone. Some can be cancelled via the account settings on the deceased's device if you have access. Others require you to contact customer support and provide evidence of the death.

Online Businesses and Domain Names

If the deceased ran an online business, including a website, Etsy or Amazon seller account, or similar, these may have real commercial value. Domain names can be transferred or sold. Online businesses may have stock, orders in progress, or subscriber lists.

Contact the domain registrar (such as GoDaddy, 123-reg, or Namecheap) to transfer or maintain the domain. Consult the beneficiaries about whether to continue, sell, or wind down any business.

The Importance of a Digital Will or Password Manager Legacy

The single biggest problem in dealing with digital assets is finding them. Executors often discover accounts weeks or months into administration by chance. The best protection is for the deceased to have left a record of their digital accounts and passwords.

Many password managers (such as 1Password, Bitwarden, and LastPass) offer emergency access features that allow a trusted person to gain access after a delay if the original user does not deny the request. Encouraging people to set this up before they die, or leaving a written record in a secure location alongside their will, can make an enormous difference.

How to Search for Digital Assets as an Executor

• Search the deceased's email inbox for account confirmation emails, subscription receipts, and financial statements
• Check the browser's saved passwords on their computer or phone
• Look at their phone's email app and any apps installed that might indicate accounts
• Check their banking apps for any regular payments to digital services
• Search for any written records: a notebook, a note in the will folder, or a digital document on their computer
• Ask family members whether they knew of any cryptocurrency, online businesses, or other digital accounts

GDPR and Data Access

The UK GDPR protects the personal data of living individuals, not deceased persons. However, platforms often apply their own privacy policies that may be stricter. As executor, you have legal authority to access the deceased's assets and accounts, but not all platforms recognise this in the same way. If a platform refuses access to an account that holds estate assets, you may need legal advice on how to proceed.