375,000 Facebook Users May Die This Year. What Do We Do With Their Stuff?

Rob Walker has a wonderful exploration of digital afterlives this week's New York Times Magazine. It's worth reading in full, but what struck me is that we're about to be overwhelmed by people dying and leaving behind accounts, avatars, and effects. Just a few years ago, it seemed novel to think about what to do about a dead person's online life. It was the sort of thing that digital anthropologists wrote papers about for obscure conferences.

Now, with the explosion of social media usage in progressively older age groups, deciding how to manage these situations will be commonplace and important. Walker cites one estimate that 375,000 American Facebook users will die this year; what had seemed bizarre is becoming banal at scale.

Full story: http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2011/01/375-000-facebook-users-may-die-this-year-what-do-we-do-with-their-stuff/68910/

I've been wondering how to delete my daughters profile since she has passed through the golden gates

Ban facebook and save 375.000 lives this year?

Statistically speaking of course.

Family can request deletion of this accounts.

This guy http://www.facebook.com/pinyoji died in the Bangkok tollway crash he is one of 9 killed....

What happens on TV George?

I've been wondering how to delete my daughters profile since she has passed through the golden gates

When a user passes away, we can memorialize their account to protect their privacy. Memorializing an account removes certain sensitive information (e.g., status updates and contact information) and sets privacy so that only confirmed friends can see the profile or locate it in search. The Wall remains so that friends and family can leave posts in remembrance. Memorializing an account also prevents all login access to it.

Memorializing the account:

Please report this information here so that we can memorialize this person’s account. Memorializing the account removes certain more sensitive information like status updates and restricts profile access to confirmed friends only. Please note that in order to protect the privacy of the deceased user, we cannot provide login information for the account to anyone. We do honor requests from close family members to close the account completely.

Removing the account:

Immediate family members may request the removal of a loved one’s account. This will completely remove the account from Facebook so that no one can view it. We will not restore the account or provide information on its content unless required by law. If you are requesting a removal and are not an immediate family member of the deceased, your request will not be processed, but the account will be memorialized.

To make a request to memorialize or remove a profile, please do so here. If you have a special request regarding a deceased user's account, please use this form. Please note that this form is only to be used for accounts that have already been memorialized.

http://www.facebook.com/help/?page=842

Edited January 7, 201115 yr by bangkokcitylimits

What happens on TV George?

Members that pass on are moved to the RIP group. All their posts remain for posterity.

When I die I will be sure to log on from the other side and tell TV about it.

What happens on TV George?

Members that pass on are moved to the RIP group. All their posts remain for posterity.

But places on a general ignore list to prevent ghost postings from scaring people.