This is the whole site on one page, in the order the steps matter. Print it and tick the boxes as you go, or work down it on screen. Each group links back to the page that explains why.
The one rule that matters most
Copy the data out before cancelling anything. Cancelling a storage plan can delete the photographs that plan was holding. See save the photos and files first.
First, before anything gets cancelled
These are the steps that stop something irreversible happening.
- Keep the dead person’s phone charged, and keep the number paid.
- Do not cancel any storage plan, phone contract, or domain renewal yet.
- List every account you know about, and note which ones hold photographs.
- Export photographs, videos, and message archives from each account you can reach.
- Open a few exported files at random to check they aren’t empty.
- Store the copies somewhere that isn’t another account of the same person.
The paperwork
Almost every platform process begins here.
- Order several certified copies of the death certificate.
- Apply to the court for letters testamentary, or the equivalent in your state.
- Keep a photo ID for whoever will be making the requests.
- Note that a will, a trust, or a power of attorney is rejected by some platforms.
- Set up mail forwarding, which needs in-person proof of executor authority.
Money leaving the estate
Nothing stops automatically. No company monitors death records.
- Pull at least 12 months of bank and card statements; three years is better.
- List every recurring charge, and mark which ones hold data.
- Cancel monthly subscriptions first, once their data is safely copied.
- Put annual renewal dates in a calendar so they don’t arrive unnoticed.
- Tell the bank, and stop acting under any power of attorney — it ended at death.
- Check whether accounts were joint with survivorship, which changes what happens.
Deadlines that are shorter than probate
These expire whether or not the estate is settled.
- Airline and hotel loyalty balances: several programmes use a one-year window.
- Domain names: they lapse on non-payment regardless of any court process.
- Cryptocurrency on an exchange: a claims process, not a login.
- Any account already close to an inactivity limit.
The accounts themselves
Only after the data is copied.
- Decide, per account, between memorialising, closing, and leaving it alone.
- Use each platform’s own documented route rather than logging in.
- Record which requests you sent, when, and what each one asked for.
- Expect a copy of the data rather than a password. That is the normal outcome.
When to stop and get help
These are the points where a professional saves time and risk.
- A platform refuses a properly documented request.
- You need the contents of messages, not just a record of them.
- The estate holds cryptocurrency held outside an exchange.
- A business, or income, ran through any of the accounts.
- Family members disagree about who should receive what.
Verified July 28, 2026. General information about United States practice, not legal advice. A lawyer licensed in the state administering the estate is the right place for decisions about a particular estate.