New Law Helps You Protect Digital Assets

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You probably have treasured family photos on your smartphone or laptop. Perhaps you’ve gone paperless with your credit card bills. What would happen to these and other digital assets if you became incapacitated or died?

Under a new law, U.S. Virgin Islands residents can assign legal authority over certain kinds of digital information to a fiduciary, which could be a family caregiver. The law allows residents to designate someone to manage their digital assets in accordance with their estate plan. The law also protects personal emails, texts and social media posts from unwarranted exposure.

Without such a law, cyber information would be governed by the terms of service agreements with internet providers, and some information might be automatically deleted after a user’s death.

To learn more, go to aarp.org/vi.