

What happens when you die? - Glowbox
http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/125737-what-happens-when-you-die

======
spurgu
I haven't really planned on dying but now that I think about it, it would
probably be wise to do some kind of automation that sends my Lastpass password
to 1-2 relatives if I fail to check in every 6 months or so. This would give
them access to most of my online identities.

------
vishaldpatel
Who cares!? You'll be dead!

~~~
gathly
That's what I said when I read this. Who cares? After I'm dead, I don't care
what details people know about my life. In fact, I'm glad. I've been wondering
how to get passwords to my next of kin at the moment of death. Turns out, I
don't have to.

------
joejohnson
_...Modern OSes store the bulk of your data in the cloud..._

I like the idea of an OS with a built-in dead switch, but non of the modern
operating systems I use are storing the bulk of my data in the cloud. So, this
dead switch will require my heir to have physical access to my disk, at least
until cloud-based filesystems are much more common.

------
StavrosK
Heh, the site mentions creating a Dead Man's Switch and doesn't actually
mention Dead Man's Switch: <http://www.deadmansswitch.net>

~~~
mrsebastian
There are tons of sites like Dead Man's Switch. I couldn't think of any reason
that that site in particular was any better/more reliable/steadfast than the
others.

------
yan
This is a problem LifeEnsured (<https://www.lifeensured.com/>) is trying to
solve.

------
kijin
Personally, I don't see any reason for anybody to have access to my online
passwords if I die tomorrow. Everything that really matters is either already
public (e.g. GitHub) or already shared with people who matter (e.g. Dropbox
shared folders). No need for a password to access their contents. I also can't
think of any cloud-based data that I would want to keep password-protected
during my life but reveal after death. If it's not already public and/or
shared with at least my family, it's probably because I have judged that it's
none of their business in the first place.

But the contents of my encrypted hard drive is a different question. The
article suggests using a hidden volume with a separate password, and that's a
use case I've never thought of. Although practically, it would be more
convenient to use two separate partitions or an external hard drive, because
then you can mount both at the same time and periodically synchronize data
between them.

------
ChrisNorstrom
I have to strongly agree with Google and Microsoft's policies of releasing all
emails upon death to my family.

Email is a dumping ground for everything from signup confirmations to
evidence, business dealings, and an entire person's life. Since none of us
plan ahead for death, when we do die we leave a LOT of unfinished business or
outstanding orders. Most of the people that we interact with, do business with
will have no idea what happened to us. Their only way of finding out is to
send an email and hope for a return.

The family might be able to use emails to find evidence of a homicide, or the
last location of the person (if they went missing). Or the family can finish
up any unfinished business the deceased had, answer and respond to people who
were expecting a reply from the (now) deceased person, or complaints. Imagine
dying in the middle of fulfilling a successful kickstarter campaign. Imagine
all those angry people trying to figure out why you haven't responded in
months. The only way your family would find out about your Kickstarter
campaign is through your emails. And that's just one example.

Emotionally releasing all your info might bother you, but logically it makes a
lot of sense. If you're worried about your family finding out that you had an
affair or were secretly a hermaphrodite or cross-dresser or into some real
kinky shit, why would it matter to you? You're dead. Gone from the earth
forever, never to feel pain, joy, or embarrassment again.

~~~
prodigal_erik
Procedural customer support stuff is one thing, but for a sysadmin to blindly
disclose messages between me and my close living friends is appalling. They
entrusted me with confidential facts and controversial ideas, and people have
literally been ostracized or murdered over affairs and kinky shit.

~~~
ChrisNorstrom
Hmmm now that you mention it. I completely forgot that your emails can contain
damaging info about other (still living) people. Then again, in a world where
it's so easy to copy + paste, it's foolish on the part of the discloser to
throw around such personal details in an email message.

