Social media profiles contain a huge history of our lives, which continues to show regular memories and birthday reminders, after a user dies.
Turning off a person's Facebook page after their death, for example, may limit receiving some painful reminders for family members after they are gone.
But even if you are well versed in how to manage your Facebook, Twitter and Instagram profiles, you may not know how to turn off someone else's account.
closing request
An important point to note about Facebook is that turning off someone's account is not the only option, it can also be commemorated.
If you have to delete your close person's account, you will need to prove that you are an immediate family member or executor of the account holder's will.
It is Facebook's policy that the quickest way to do this is to scan the death certificate and send it to the company.
If you do not have this document, you can submit one of the following options to prove your authority:
⦁ Power of attorney.
⦁ Birth certificate.
⦁ Letter of Will.
One of the following procedures must also be submitted to prove death:
⦁ obituary.
⦁ souvenir card.
You can submit the request to Facebook via this link.
How do I commemorate the account?
With so many photos stored on Facebook, you may not like the idea of deleting all those precious memories.
Alternatively, memorializing an account can turn the account into a place for family and friends to share memories.
Once Facebook notifies the account holder of the death, the word "memorialise" will appear next to the name.
One important difference with an account that is to be memorialized is that no one will be allowed to log into it.
It also won't appear in Suggested Friends notifications, and it won't send birthday reminders.
Pages, where the only administrator is the immortalized account, will also be deleted.
While no one can log into the account, someone else can take care of it provided that they add it among the contacts as their heir, the person is given permission to manage the account.
Successor contacts are able to write a pin post for the profile being memorialized, respond to new friend requests, and update the profile picture and cover photo.
A memorialization request can be submitted here.
Existing Instagram accounts can either be deleted or memorialized and choosing to memorialize means no one can log into the account (Getty Images)
What are my freelance options?
You may not have thought about what will happen to your account after your death, but Facebook allows you to prepare for it. You can designate heir contacts to manage your memorialized account by following these steps:
⦁ Go to your settings under the "Settings & Privacy" tab.
⦁ Click on memorial settings.
⦁ Type the friend's name and then click Add.
⦁ To let your friend know that he is now the inheritor of your contact, click Send.
You can also choose to permanently delete your account in the event of your death, and if someone reports your death to Facebook, all of your messages, photos, posts, comments, reactions and information will be immediately and permanently removed.
This option can be found in Settings and Privacy tab, scroll to the bottom and click to request "Delete your account after your death" and click on "Delete after death".
What about Twitter and Instagram?
Like Facebook, accounts on Instagram can either be deleted or memorialized.
Choosing to memorialize means that no one can log into the account and the account will not appear in certain places on the app, such as Explore.
While all of the user's photos and videos will remain on Instagram, no one will be able to make any changes including their profile picture.
To memorialize or delete an account, send a request to Instagram, and you'll need to provide proof that you're an immediate family member or responsible for the account after the original user died.
Similarly, Twitter allows only those with the required evidence to request account deletion, whether it is his heirs or immediate family.
Once you connect to Twitter, they will contact you to request details including information about the deceased, a copy of the death certificate, and a copy of your ID.