What happens with our highlighting and Notes when our account is closed upon our death?

Discussions about the Notes and Journal tool on LDS.org. This includes the Study Toolbar as well as the scriptures and other content on LDS.org that is integrated with Notes and Journal.
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sgardner7
New Member
Posts: 13
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2011 10:56 am

What happens with our highlighting and Notes when our account is closed upon our death?

#1

Post by sgardner7 »

I have made extensive scripture highlighting and added copious explanatory notes and attached general authority quotes to some of those scriptures. My children are very interested in having access to my Notes section with all their tags when I pass on. What happens with my account with all those highlights and notes and tags when I die? Is there a way they can still gain access to them? Is the account not closed? If not, they could potentially access it with my username and password.
russellhltn
Community Administrator
Posts: 34417
Joined: Sat Jan 20, 2007 2:53 pm
Location: U.S.

Re: What happens with our highlighting and Notes when our account is closed upon our death?

#2

Post by russellhltn »

Please see this post.

Your account is closed upon the clerk recording your death, but there is a way for the notations to be available to family.
Have you searched the Help Center? Try doing a Google search and adding "site:churchofjesuschrist.org/help" to the search criteria.

So we can better help you, please edit your Profile to include your general location.
jkfullmer
New Member
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Jan 12, 2021 4:06 pm

Re: What happens with our highlighting and Notes when our account is closed upon our death?

#3

Post by jkfullmer »

Is there any more information available about this one? Exactly how can the information be accessed? This permission need to be granted in advance, or does it become a part of an inherited digital profile like many social media accounts?
I've been asked this question several times over the last year or two and I finally gotten around to investigating. Any assistance or help pointing me in the right direction would be appreciated.
garystroble
Senior Member
Posts: 744
Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2016 4:34 pm
Location: near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States

Re: What happens with our highlighting and Notes when our account is closed upon our death?

#4

Post by garystroble »

jkfullmer wrote: Mon Nov 28, 2022 1:41 pm Is there any more information available about this one? Exactly how can the information be accessed? This permission need to be granted in advance, or does it become a part of an inherited digital profile like many social media accounts?
I've been asked this question several times over the last year or two and I finally gotten around to investigating. Any assistance or help pointing me in the right direction would be appreciated.
The answer may lie, in whole or in part, in the agreement you click on when first using the Church's digital platforms. Suspect it may say something about who actually owns the data or words to that effect.

Here are the current terms of use:
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/leg ... country=go
mevans
Senior Member
Posts: 2049
Joined: Tue May 22, 2012 1:52 pm
Location: California, USA

Re: What happens with our highlighting and Notes when our account is closed upon our death?

#5

Post by mevans »

jkfullmer wrote: Mon Nov 28, 2022 1:41 pm Is there any more information available about this one? Exactly how can the information be accessed? This permission need to be granted in advance, or does it become a part of an inherited digital profile like many social media accounts?
I've been asked this question several times over the last year or two and I finally gotten around to investigating. Any assistance or help pointing me in the right direction would be appreciated.
The previous post from russellhltn has a link to another post that answers several of your questions. There are answers in that post from sbradshaw, who happens to be a church employee and seems to have some detailed knowledge about the process. sbradshaw isn't speaking as an official church employee, but is a very helpful and knowledgeable person who participates in the forums. What he said is probably the best information you're going to get for now. If you still have unanswered questions, I suggest asking in that post; perhaps sbradshaw will respond.

Digital rights of the deceased seems to be an evolving legal area. A couple of years ago, our trust attorney recommended an addendum to our trust clarifying our wishes about online profiles. I won't be surprised if there are more addendums in future years as legal questions continue to arise. If there are family members whose online accounts are important to you after their death, I recommend that you discuss these concerns with your family members and have them clarify their wishes legally, according to the laws of where they live. This can be a sensitive area and sometimes loved ones refuse to take care of their affairs while alive, leaving a horrible mess for family to take care of after they are deceased.
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