Facebook is trying to figure out how to deal with Facebook pages after their accountholders have passed. There are many issues involved such as privacy, surviving friends and family wanting to maintain contact with the deceased's Facebook friends, who changes or closes the accounts after death and laws.
Sharing our thoughts and photos on social media sites has become a daily part of our lives, but what happens to your Facebook account when you die?
The tech firm recently said it tries to prioritize the privacy and wishes of the deceased, but doing so isn't always easy.
"These questions — how to weigh survivors' competing interests, determine the wishes of the deceased, and protect the privacy of third parties — have been some of the toughest we've confronted, and we still don't have all the answers," wrote Monika Bickert, Facebook's director of global policy management.
https://www.thespec.com/news-story/7516338-facebook-explains-what-happens-to-your-account-when-you-die/Remember, Facebook is based in California and there's a legal section that mentions that detail when you visit Facebook. How many Facebook users know the social media laws in California and what laws apply to estate matters there?
Given that now North Americans are preparing their returns to school and social media accounts are a key part of their daily lives, families need to discuss social media accounts and legacy wishes prior to the students' departures to school. This would be a good time to discuss the roles of powers of attorneys or living wills in your province or state if family and students are located in the same one or what may be needed in the other state/province if the student is not attending school in the same jurisdiction-laws may vary regarding living wills/powers of attorney (that in effect during the life of the person creating them until there is a change made to them or the person dies--at which point their assigned or deemed executor has legal control of their body and assets when court approval is obtained).
I can understand why Facebook is struggling with privacy versus requests to keep pages active or accessible to others. But laws exist. And so do Events options on Facebook. Why could family and friends not post on the deceased's Facebook page a link to a Remembering Event on their OWN Facebook pages plus a link to any obituaries or funeral home guestbooks along with a request to Facebook friends to keep in touch and add their remembrances on those links? This way, the deceased's Facebook page may have a short period of activity that is directed to other active pages. Personally, I'd like Facebook to require some kind of notice or do a 90-day cycle of keeping an account active after an accountholder's death then making the account a closed one without letting additional posts be added.