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What happens to all our wealth when we suddenly have a stroke or other serious illness and can no longer understand what a password is or how to read an SMS on

What happens to all our wealth when we suddenly have a stroke or other serious illness and can no longer understand what a password is or how to read an SMS on our phones? As a very IT-literate user I already struggle immensely keeping track of all my insurances, investment portal logins, bank account logins, etc. I shudder to think what would happen in the case of becoming cognitively incapacitated in some way.

sowbug 4y ago
A solution has to start somewhere, and this is such a place: https://github.com/sowbug/b39tools https://github.com/sowbug/b39tools. It produces five physical cards, each containing a share of a Shamir's Secret Sharing Scheme secret, that can be used to decrypt a text document with important passphrases that next of kin will need. Every time I return to this repo, I think it's awful, and I try to improve the recovery phase's usability. That said, the author of the article notes that "[His wife is] not a techie and has absolutely no interest in becoming one." I'd advise him to separate the concerns of living the life of a techie, and handling the death of one. If you've ever been an executor of a loved one's estate, or worse, in charge of the estate of someone who died without a will but with significant assets, you know that dealing with someone's affairs after death is complicated or expensive (and often both). Asking someone to install some software and enter credentials is well within bounds.
- nicky0 4y ago
  Your relatives won't need a password or login to access your financial stuff. once you die the executor of your estate will be able to apply to the relevant companies manage your affairs. Of course, if all your assets are in bitcoin then they are screwed.
  - sowbug 4y ago
    You're correct, but there's a practical difference. Having the credentials allows a distribution in minutes, whereas going the old-fashioned route of sending in copies of paperwork, sometimes with notarization or even signature-guarantee requirements, can take months. Ask anyone who's needed to use the U.S. government's Treasury Direct site to manage savings bonds. And it's considerate to keep a list of accounts with credentials that your loved ones can consult during a difficult time. Especially with paperless communications these days, they might have no way of knowing an account even exists, and might learn only years later when escheat is approaching.
    - stevezsa8 4y ago
      I guess as long as it's legal to remove assets with the credentials of the loved one who passed. In some countries you have to pay any inheritance taxes before you are legally able to take control of assets. I 100% agree with listing accounts as part of a formal Will and Testament.
      - trynewideas 4y ago
        For the US, where I and the article author are based, there's no federal inheritance tax, and federal estate taxes are assessed only on more than US$12-13 million. If someone has to deal with these amounts in the United States, it's much less likely that they lack the means to coordinate the estate. Only six states assess inheritance taxes, and only 12 assess estate taxes. Few (none?) assess those taxes against surviving spouses, children, or parents who inherit, and most are exempt if the inheritance or estate is under US$1 million. I live in one of the 12 estate tax states, and their estate had no such tax obligations as a sole-surviving spouse. As a sole surviving spouse with no children, my state also granted me automatic and immediate default probate control over my partner's estate upon their death, and would have even if they didn't have a formal will. Their will only specified a few of their financial accounts, and my access to their digital estate allowed me to manage the rest either directly or by simply knowing that they exist so I can submit the forms and certificates to close them out. (One such account had a $0 balance; it was purely administrative work, but still necessary.) Having children, ex-spouses, or legal guardianship over a dependent all complicate these considerably, but in many cases it really is this simple.
    - jjav 4y ago
      > Having the credentials allows a distribution in minutes Not really since that wouldn't be legal. The estate is going to have to be processed through whichever local laws apply to it and that's going to take the time it takes whether you have passwords or not.
DrammBA 4y ago
My backup plan at the moment is the emergency access feature of my password manager (bitwarden), I designated my SO as a trusted contact and gave them "takeover" permission, so they can reset my master password and access my vault in case something happens to me. Disclaimer: I wasn't paid to promote this, and the emergency access feature is only available on the premium (paid) plans. I still wholeheartedly recommend bitwarden as it has served me well over the years.
nradov 4y ago
When a person is cognitively incapacitated, someone else can petition the court to appoint a conservator. The conservator can then forward the court order to financial institutions and gain control of all accounts. However, this can be a lengthy process and sometimes things fall through the cracks. Bills often go unpaid for a while. The conservator might not even be aware of some accounts, especially if the account holder signed up for electronic statement delivery.

sowbug 4y ago

A solution has to start somewhere, and this is such a place: https://github.com/sowbug/b39tools https://github.com/sowbug/b39tools. It produces five physical cards, each containing a share of a Shamir's Secret Sharing Scheme secret, that can be used to decrypt a text document with important passphrases that next of kin will need. Every time I return to this repo, I think it's awful, and I try to improve the recovery phase's usability. That said, the author of the article notes that "[His wife is] not a techie and has absolutely no interest in becoming one." I'd advise him to separate the concerns of living the life of a techie, and handling the death of one. If you've ever been an executor of a loved one's estate, or worse, in charge of the estate of someone who died without a will but with significant assets, you know that dealing with someone's affairs after death is complicated or expensive (and often both). Asking someone to install some software and enter credentials is well within bounds.

nicky0 4y ago
Your relatives won't need a password or login to access your financial stuff. once you die the executor of your estate will be able to apply to the relevant companies manage your affairs. Of course, if all your assets are in bitcoin then they are screwed.
- sowbug 4y ago
  You're correct, but there's a practical difference. Having the credentials allows a distribution in minutes, whereas going the old-fashioned route of sending in copies of paperwork, sometimes with notarization or even signature-guarantee requirements, can take months. Ask anyone who's needed to use the U.S. government's Treasury Direct site to manage savings bonds. And it's considerate to keep a list of accounts with credentials that your loved ones can consult during a difficult time. Especially with paperless communications these days, they might have no way of knowing an account even exists, and might learn only years later when escheat is approaching.
  - stevezsa8 4y ago
    I guess as long as it's legal to remove assets with the credentials of the loved one who passed. In some countries you have to pay any inheritance taxes before you are legally able to take control of assets. I 100% agree with listing accounts as part of a formal Will and Testament.
    - trynewideas 4y ago
      For the US, where I and the article author are based, there's no federal inheritance tax, and federal estate taxes are assessed only on more than US$12-13 million. If someone has to deal with these amounts in the United States, it's much less likely that they lack the means to coordinate the estate. Only six states assess inheritance taxes, and only 12 assess estate taxes. Few (none?) assess those taxes against surviving spouses, children, or parents who inherit, and most are exempt if the inheritance or estate is under US$1 million. I live in one of the 12 estate tax states, and their estate had no such tax obligations as a sole-surviving spouse. As a sole surviving spouse with no children, my state also granted me automatic and immediate default probate control over my partner's estate upon their death, and would have even if they didn't have a formal will. Their will only specified a few of their financial accounts, and my access to their digital estate allowed me to manage the rest either directly or by simply knowing that they exist so I can submit the forms and certificates to close them out. (One such account had a $0 balance; it was purely administrative work, but still necessary.) Having children, ex-spouses, or legal guardianship over a dependent all complicate these considerably, but in many cases it really is this simple.
  - jjav 4y ago
    > Having the credentials allows a distribution in minutes Not really since that wouldn't be legal. The estate is going to have to be processed through whichever local laws apply to it and that's going to take the time it takes whether you have passwords or not.

DrammBA 4y ago

My backup plan at the moment is the emergency access feature of my password manager (bitwarden), I designated my SO as a trusted contact and gave them "takeover" permission, so they can reset my master password and access my vault in case something happens to me. Disclaimer: I wasn't paid to promote this, and the emergency access feature is only available on the premium (paid) plans. I still wholeheartedly recommend bitwarden as it has served me well over the years.

nradov 4y ago

When a person is cognitively incapacitated, someone else can petition the court to appoint a conservator. The conservator can then forward the court order to financial institutions and gain control of all accounts. However, this can be a lengthy process and sometimes things fall through the cracks. Bills often go unpaid for a while. The conservator might not even be aware of some accounts, especially if the account holder signed up for electronic statement delivery.