Access key (Apple)
A code Apple creates when someone is named as a Legacy Contact. They need it, plus a death certificate, to request access to the person's iCloud data. Keep a printed copy with important papers.
See also: Legacy Contact (Apple)
Glossary
Plain definitions for the words you'll run into while organizing a digital life, yours or a parent's.
Laws and company policies change. We check these definitions regularly, and nothing here is legal or financial advice. Last reviewed: October 2026.
Account Recovery Contact (Apple)
Someone you choose to help you get back into your own Apple Account if you're locked out. They can't see your data, and the role ends at death. It is different from a Legacy Contact.
Activation Lock
An Apple security feature that stops anyone from erasing and reusing an iPhone, iPad or Mac without the owner's Apple Account password. Apple may help remove it after a death through its official process.
Authenticator app
An app that shows a new six-digit code every 30 seconds for logging in, such as Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator or Authy. The codes live on that one phone, so if the phone is lost or locked, the codes go with it unless backups were set up.
Backup codes
A short list of one-time codes a website gives you when you turn on two-factor authentication, for use when your phone isn't available. Print them or save them in a password manager, and note where they are, never the codes themselves, in your plan.
Device passcode
The code that unlocks a phone or tablet. It's separate from account passwords, and Apple can't remove it without erasing the device, so families need to know where it's kept.
Face ID and fingerprint login
Unlocking a phone, computer or app with your face or fingerprint. Convenient for the owner, but nobody else can use it, so the device's passcode still needs a known, safe location.
iCloud Keychain
Apple's built-in password manager that saves passwords and passkeys across a person's Apple devices. A Legacy Contact does not receive these passwords.
Master password
The one password that unlocks a password manager. If it's lost, most password managers can't recover it for you, so its location deserves a careful place in your plan, such as a sealed note in a safe.
Passkey
A newer way to sign in without a password, using your face, fingerprint or phone PIN. Passkeys are tied to your devices and the account that syncs them, so a family member usually needs access to those, not a password.
See also: Face ID and fingerprint login
Password manager
An app that stores your passwords in one encrypted vault, such as 1Password, Bitwarden or the one built into your phone. You remember one master password; the app remembers the rest. In a legacy plan, it's often the single most useful thing a trusted person can know about.
See also: Master password, Account inventory
Phishing
A fake email, text or call that pretends to be from a bank, company or relative to get passwords or money. Scammers often target families right after a death, when people are busy and expecting official messages.
Recovery email and recovery phone
The backup email address or phone number a company uses to reset your password or confirm it's really you. An old recovery email nobody checks anymore is a common reason families get stuck.
Recovery phrase
Also called seed phrase.
A list of 12 or 24 words that restores a cryptocurrency wallet. Anyone with the phrase can take the funds, and without it they may be gone for good. Never write it in a legacy plan; note only where it's stored.
SIM swap
A scam where someone convinces a phone carrier to move your number to their phone, so they receive your text-message codes. A carrier account PIN, and using an authenticator app instead of texts where possible, makes this harder.
Two-factor authentication (2FA)
Also called two-step verification or multi-factor authentication.
A second step after your password, like a code sent by text or shown in an app. It keeps strangers out, but it can also lock out a family member who has the password and not the phone.
See also: Authenticator app, Backup codes
Account inventory
A list of your important accounts, with notes on where to find the login details, never the passwords themselves. The Digital Legacy Map is a structured account inventory.
Digital assets
The things you own or control online. Some have money value, like a PayPal balance, cryptocurrency or a website that earns income. Others have personal value, like photos, videos and writing.
See also: Digital legacy
Digital executor
A person chosen to handle someone's online accounts after death. Some states let a will name one; in others, the executor handles digital matters too.
Digital footprint
The trail of accounts, posts and records you've created online over the years, including the ones you've forgotten about. An old email address or shopping account often surfaces only when someone starts looking.
Digital legacy
Everything you leave behind online: accounts, photos, messages, files, subscriptions and anything with money attached, plus your wishes for what should happen to them.
Digital point person
The one person in your family or circle who knows where your plan is kept and handles the digital side if something happens. Choosing one person, plus a backup, avoids confusion between siblings.
Emergency contact
The person a company, doctor or phone should call if something happens to you. On iPhones and Android phones, emergency contacts and medical details can be shown on the lock screen without unlocking the phone.
Inactive Account Manager (Google)
A Google setting that decides what happens if your account goes unused for a period you choose. You can name up to 10 people to be notified and choose which data each can download, such as photos or Gmail. Without a plan, Google may delete accounts inactive for at least two years.
Legacy Contact (Apple)
A person you choose in your Apple Account settings who can request access to your account data, such as photos, messages, notes, files and device backups, after your death. They need the access key you create during setup plus a death certificate. They can't access purchased movies, music or books, or the passwords and payment details stored in iCloud Keychain. Setting one up requires iOS 15.2, iPadOS 15.2 or macOS Monterey 12.1 or later.
Legacy Contact (Facebook)
Someone you name in Facebook's settings to look after your profile once it's memorialized. They can pin a tribute post, update the profile and cover photos, respond to friend requests and request that the account be deleted. They can't log in as you or read your messages.
Letter of instruction
An informal letter, kept with a will, that explains practical wishes, such as where documents are kept and who to contact. It isn't legally binding, which makes it easy to update.
Memorialized account
A Facebook or Instagram profile turned into a place of remembrance after someone dies, with “Remembering” shown next to the name. Family can request it by sending proof of death, such as an obituary or death certificate. Nobody can log in to a memorialized account. Immediate family or an estate representative can instead ask for the account to be removed.
Trusted contact
The person you choose to help with your digital life if you can't. Many companies now let you name one in your account settings, and the term also describes the person named in your own plan.
See also: Digital point person, Legacy Contact (Apple)
Trusted contact person (brokerage)
Someone named on an investment account whom the firm may contact if it can't reach the account holder or suspects financial exploitation. They can't make trades or see the balance.
These definitions explain what the words mean. They aren't legal advice, and the rules vary by state and country. For decisions about your own situation, talk to an estate-planning attorney.
Advance directive
A document that records your wishes for medical care if you can't speak for yourself, and often names someone to make health decisions for you. A living will and a health care proxy are common types.
Beneficiary designation
A form, often filled in online, that names who receives a specific account when you die, such as a retirement account or life insurance policy. It usually overrides what a will says, so it's worth checking these forms are up to date.
Death certificate
The official record of a death. Banks, phone carriers, social media companies and government offices usually ask for a certified copy, so families often order several.
Durable power of attorney
A power of attorney that stays in effect if the person becomes unable to make decisions. It still ends at death.
See also: Power of attorney
Executor
The person named in a will to settle someone's affairs after they die: paying bills, closing accounts and distributing property. In some places the court-appointed equivalent is called a personal representative or administrator.
Health care proxy
A document naming someone to make medical decisions if a person can't. In some states it's part of an advance directive.
See also: Advance directive
HIPAA authorization
A signed form that lets doctors and hospitals share a person's health information with the people named on it. It doesn't give decision-making power.
Letters testamentary
A court document that confirms an executor's authority to act for the estate. Banks and other companies often ask for it. When there's no will, the similar document is called letters of administration.
Power of attorney
A legal document that lets someone act for you while you're alive, usually for money or legal matters. A durable power of attorney stays in effect if you can no longer make decisions yourself. It ends at death, when the executor takes over.
Probate
The court process that confirms a will and gives the executor legal authority to act. Some accounts and assets pass outside probate, such as those with a named beneficiary or joint owner.
RUFADAA
Short for the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, a model law adopted by most US states. It sets the rules for when an executor or other fiduciary can access someone's online accounts. In general, instructions given through a company's own tool, like Google's Inactive Account Manager, come first, then instructions in a will or similar document, then the company's terms of service. Executors can often see a list of someone's emails without being able to read them, unless the person gave consent.
Will
A legal document that says who receives your property after your death and who should handle your affairs. You can mention digital assets in a will, but a will becomes public in many places, so passwords and account details never belong in it.
Autopay
A bill set to pay itself each month from a bank account or card. Some autopay bills should keep running for a while after a death or illness, like utilities and insurance, while others should stop. A list of what's on autopay helps your family decide.
Credit freeze
A block placed at the credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) so nobody can open new credit in a person's name. It's free in the US and doesn't affect existing accounts. Families sometimes place one for a parent who is vulnerable to scams.
Deceased alert
A note added to a person's credit report after their death, telling lenders not to open new accounts in that name. The executor or a close family member usually requests it from each credit bureau with a copy of the death certificate.
Identity theft
When someone uses another person's information, such as their name, Social Security number or accounts, to open credit, file taxes or make purchases. Older adults and people who have recently died are common targets, which is why closing unused accounts and placing a deceased alert help.
Payable-on-death (POD) / transfer-on-death (TOD)
A designation on a bank or investment account that passes it directly to a named person at death, usually without probate.
See also: Beneficiary designation
Subscription
A service that charges on a schedule until someone cancels it: streaming, apps, cloud storage, memberships, delivery services. They're easy to forget because they rarely send a bill, which is why they belong in an account inventory.
See also: Autopay
Voice-cloning scam
A scam in which a caller uses AI to imitate a relative's voice and ask for money urgently. A family code word helps parents check whether a call is real.
See also: Phishing
Cloud storage
Files, photos and backups kept on a company's servers instead of only on your device, such as iCloud, Google Photos, Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive. Only the account owner can usually get in, so years of family photos can become unreachable if nobody planned for it.
See also: Data export, Legacy Contact (Apple), Inactive Account Manager (Google)
Data export
Downloading a copy of everything in an account, such as photos, emails and documents, into files you keep yourself. Google calls its tool Google Takeout; Apple, Meta and most large services offer a similar “download your data” option. It's a simple way to keep a family copy of what matters most.
Google Takeout
Google's tool for downloading a copy of the data in a Google Account, including Google Photos, Gmail and Drive files.
See also: Data export
Memorialization
Turning a person's online presence into a place of remembrance after they die, most often a memorialized Facebook or Instagram profile. Some families also choose a memorial website or a shared photo album instead of keeping social media accounts open.
See also: Memorialized account
Shared Photo Library (iCloud)
An Apple feature that lets up to six people share one photo library, so family photos don't live in a single account. Everyone in it can add, edit and delete photos.
Ready to put it into practice? The book and the Legacy Map walk you through each of these step by step.
See the guides