There is a version of you that exists entirely online. Your bank accounts. Your cryptocurrency wallets. Your PayPal balance. Decades of photographs stored in the cloud. A social media presence that people will continue to visit long after you are gone. A password manager holding the keys to all of it.

When you die, what happens to that version of you? Who can access it? Who has the legal right to manage it, transfer it, or shut it down? For most Californians, the honest answer is: nobody knows. And that uncertainty can cost families real money, real memories, and real peace of mind.

The Legal Framework: California’s RUFADAA

California adopted the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA) in 2016, codified at Probate Code § 870 et seq. RUFADAA establishes a framework for fiduciaries — trustees, executors, agents under a power of attorney — to access and manage digital assets after death or incapacity.

But RUFADAA comes with a critical limitation: it defers to the terms of service of each digital platform. If a platform’s terms of service prohibit account transfer or access by third parties, those terms generally prevail over your estate plan — unless you have affirmatively granted access through the platform’s own tools (such as Google’s Inactive Account Manager or Apple’s Legacy Contact feature). This means your estate plan alone is not enough. You need a coordinated digital asset strategy.

The Three Categories of Digital Assets

Not all digital assets are treated the same, and understanding the differences matters for planning:
Financial digital assets. Cryptocurrency, NFTs, PayPal balances, Venmo, online brokerage accounts, and peer-to-peer payment accounts. These have real monetary value and can be transferred or liquidated — but only if your fiduciary can access the wallet, knows the private key or seed phrase, and has the legal authority to act. A cryptocurrency wallet with no documented access instructions is, for all practical purposes, lost.

Accounts and subscriptions. Email, cloud storage, streaming services, domain names, and online businesses. Some have monetary value; all contain information your family may need. Access is governed by each platform’s terms of service and, where applicable, RUFADAA.

Social media and digital legacy. Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and similar platforms each have their own policies for memorialization, account deletion, or legacy contact designation. A memorialized account can be a meaningful way to preserve someone’s memory. An unmanaged account left open can be a source of pain — or a target for fraud.

What Your Estate Plan Needs to Address

A digital asset plan has two components: the legal documents and the practical inventory. On the legal side, your revocable living trust and durable power of attorney should explicitly authorize your trustee and agent to access, manage, and transfer digital assets. Generic language is not sufficient — RUFADAA requires specific authorization.
On the practical side, your fiduciary needs to be able to find and access your accounts. This does not mean writing passwords in your will (which becomes a public document after death). It means maintaining a secure, updated digital asset inventory that your trustee or agent knows how to locate. Password managers, encrypted USB drives, or secure document vaults are all reasonable options — as long as the access instructions themselves are documented somewhere trusted.

Cryptocurrency Deserves Special Attention

Unlike a bank account, cryptocurrency held in a self-custody wallet has no institution behind it. There is no customer service line to call. There is no account recovery option. If your successor trustee does not have your private key or seed phrase, the assets are simply gone. The estimated value of permanently inaccessible Bitcoin alone runs into the hundreds of billions of dollars globally.

If you hold meaningful cryptocurrency, your estate plan must include documented, securely stored access instructions. Your attorney can help you structure this in a way that protects the assets from theft during your lifetime while ensuring access after death.

Your Digital Life Has Real Value. Plan for It.

Digital assets are no longer a niche planning concern. They are part of nearly every California estate. Whether your digital footprint is modest or substantial, the people you leave behind deserve a plan that gives them access, authority, and clarity.
Contact Kushner Legal Corporation today to schedule a consultation at our Beverly Hills or Palm Springs office. We will help you build an estate plan that covers every part of your life — including the parts that exist only online.
Kushner Legal Corporation | Beverly Hills | Palm Springs | 310-279-5166