Digital Asset Inventory Guide

Why Digital Assets Matter

The average person has more than 160 online accounts. Many of these hold financial value, sentimental value, or both. Yet digital assets are routinely overlooked in estate planning. When someone dies or becomes incapacitated, survivors face locked accounts, lost credentials, and assets that may be permanently inaccessible.

This guide provides a structured framework for identifying every category of digital asset, documenting access information securely, and building a plan that ensures fiduciaries can manage these assets when needed. It is designed as a companion to Bancroft's Asset Inventory Worksheet, which includes a digital assets section for quick documentation.

What Qualifies as a Digital Asset

A digital asset is any electronic record in which a person has a right or interest. Under the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA), this includes:

• Financial accounts accessed or managed online (banking, brokerage, payment apps)
• Cryptocurrency and blockchain assets (Bitcoin, Ethereum, DeFi protocols, NFTs)
• Email accounts (often the key to resetting passwords for everything else)
• Social media profiles (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X/Twitter, YouTube)
• Cloud storage (Google Drive, Dropbox, iCloud, OneDrive)
• Digital media (music, ebook, photo, and video libraries)
• Online businesses (websites, domain names, e-commerce stores, SaaS products)
• Subscription services (streaming, software, memberships, recurring charges)
• Loyalty and rewards programs (airline miles, hotel points, credit card points)
• Intellectual property stored digitally (manuscripts, designs, software code, patents)

Financial Accounts

Online banking, brokerage, and payment accounts are often the most financially significant digital assets. While these accounts are covered by traditional estate planning (beneficiary designations, TOD/POD registrations), the ability to access and manage them online is a separate concern.

Cryptocurrency and Blockchain Assets

Cryptocurrency requires special attention because it operates outside of traditional financial institutions. There is no bank to call. If the private keys or seed phrases are lost, the assets are permanently unrecoverable.

Communication and Personal Accounts

Email Accounts

Email is often the most critical digital asset to access first, not because of the emails themselves, but because email is the recovery method for virtually every other account. Gaining access to a decedent's primary email opens password resets across all linked services.

Social Media

Cloud Storage and Digital Media

Cloud storage accounts often contain the most emotionally valuable assets: family photos, videos, personal documents, and correspondence. Digital media libraries (music, ebooks, movies) are typically licensed, not owned, meaning they cannot be transferred. But cloud-stored personal content can be preserved with proper access.

Online Businesses and Revenue

Clients who own online businesses, manage websites, or earn revenue from digital platforms hold assets that require active management after death or incapacity. Unlike a bank account that simply sits, an online business may have customers, employees, hosting fees, and domain renewals that need immediate attention.

Subscriptions and Recurring Charges

Subscriptions cost the estate money every month until somebody stops them, so they have to be documented and cancelled after death. The average American household pays for 12 subscription services. Left uncancelled, these drain estate funds indefinitely.

Password Management

A password manager is the single most important tool for digital estate planning. It stores all credentials in one encrypted vault, accessible with a single master password. Without a password manager, survivors face the prospect of resetting or recovering hundreds of individual accounts.

1. Use a password manager. 1Password, Bitwarden, Dashlane, and LastPass are common options. Store all account credentials here, not in a notebook, spreadsheet, or sticky notes.
2. Document the master password securely. Write the master password on paper and store it with other estate planning documents (e.g., in Bancroft's Digital Safe, a safe deposit box, or with the estate attorney). Do not email it, text it, or store it in another digital account.
3. Enable emergency access. Most password managers offer an emergency access feature that allows a designated person to request access after a waiting period. 1Password has a family plan with shared vaults. Bitwarden offers an emergency access feature with configurable wait times.
4. Back up 2FA recovery codes. For every account that uses two-factor authentication, save the backup/recovery codes in the password manager or with the master password documentation.

The Legal Framework: RUFADAA

The Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA) has been adopted in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. It provides the legal framework for fiduciary access to digital assets after death or during incapacity.

How RUFADAA Works

RUFADAA establishes a three-tier priority system for determining who can access a deceased person's digital assets:

1. The user's online tool directions. If the user configured a platform's built-in legacy tool (Google Inactive Account Manager, Apple Digital Legacy, Facebook Legacy Contact), those settings take priority over everything else.
2. The user's estate planning documents. If no online tool direction exists, the will, trust, or power of attorney governs access. The document must specifically authorize digital asset access, general language about "all my property" may not be sufficient.
3. The platform's terms of service. If neither of the above exists, the platform's terms of service control. Most terms of service prohibit access by anyone other than the account holder.

What a Fiduciary Can and Cannot Access

RUFADAA distinguishes between a "catalogue" of communications (the list of senders, recipients, dates, and subject lines) and the "content" of communications (the actual messages). By default, a fiduciary can access the catalogue but not the content, unless the user specifically authorized content access.

Platform Legacy Tools: Setup Guide

The following platforms offer free, built-in legacy or inactivity tools. Configuring these takes minutes and eliminates the need for a court order in most cases.

Naming a Digital Executor

A "digital executor" is the person authorized to manage digital assets after death or incapacity. This can be the same person serving as executor or trustee, or it can be a separate individual with specific technical expertise.

Who Should Serve

The ideal digital executor has three qualities:

1. Technical competence. They should be comfortable with online accounts, password managers, two-factor authentication, and, if the client holds cryptocurrency, blockchain wallets.
2. Trustworthiness. They will have access to email, financial accounts, and private communications. They are a fiduciary and must act in the best interest of the estate and beneficiaries.
3. Availability. Some digital tasks are time-sensitive. Domain names expire. Subscription charges continue. The digital executor must be able to act promptly.

What the Estate Documents Should Say

To ensure the digital executor has proper authority, the will, trust, or power of attorney should include language that:

• Specifically defines "digital assets" to include all electronic records, accounts, and content
• Grants authority to access, manage, continue, or terminate digital accounts
• Authorizes access to the content of electronic communications (not just the catalogue)
• Names the digital executor (if different from the primary executor or trustee)
• Authorizes the digital executor to bypass or override terms-of-service restrictions to the extent permitted by law
• References RUFADAA and the client's state-specific version of the statute

Credential Security Architecture

The fundamental challenge of digital estate planning is the security paradox: credentials must be secure enough to protect the client during life but accessible enough for the fiduciary to use after death. Here is a tiered approach that balances both.

Action Steps

Digital estate planning is not a one-time event. Accounts change, new services are added, and credentials are updated. The following checklists should be completed during the initial estate planning process and reviewed annually.

Initial Setup

• ☐Set up a password manager and migrate all credentials into it. Configure emergency access for a trusted person.
• ☐Configure platform legacy tools: Google Inactive Account Manager, Apple Digital Legacy Contact, Facebook Legacy Contact.
• ☐Complete the digital asset inventory using Bancroft's Asset Inventory Worksheet or a dedicated digital asset list covering all categories in this guide.
• ☐Document master credentials on paper. Store the password manager master password and device passcodes in a sealed envelope with the estate attorney or in Bancroft's Digital Safe.
• ☐Secure cryptocurrency access. Write seed phrases on paper or metal. Store in a fireproof location separate from device PINs. Document exchange accounts and 2FA recovery codes.
• ☐Update estate planning documents to specifically reference digital assets, grant content access authority, and name a digital executor if appropriate.
• ☐Inform the executor or trustee that a digital asset inventory exists and where to find it. They do not need credentials now, just the knowledge that the plan is in place.

Annual Review

• ☐Review and update the digital asset inventory for new or closed accounts.
• ☐Verify that password manager emergency access contacts are current.
• ☐Confirm platform legacy tool settings have not been reset by software updates.
• ☐Update stored master credentials if passwords have changed.
• ☐Review subscription list and cancel unused services.
• ☐Verify cryptocurrency holdings and that seed phrase storage is intact and accessible.

Loyalty and Rewards Programs

Airline miles, hotel points, and credit card rewards often have significant value but are frequently overlooked. Transferability varies by program:

• Airlines: Most major airlines allow transfer of miles to an heir or estate with a death certificate. Some charge a fee.
• Hotels: Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors, and IHG allow transfer to a family member upon death.
• Credit card points: Policies vary by issuer. Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, and Citi ThankYou points generally allow transfer. Points are forfeited if the account is closed before transfer.

Glossary