U.S. and Canadian laws, which are similar for the most part, don't treat digital assets like physical ones that can be distributed according to wills. In 1986,

U.S. and Canadian laws, which are similar for the most part, don't treat digital assets like physical ones that can be distributed according to wills. In 1986, Congress passed a law forbidding consumer electronic-communications companies from disclosing content without its owner's consent or a government order like a police investigation. Although that law predates the rise of the commercial Internet, courts and companies have largely interpreted it to mean that the families can't force companies to let them access the deceased's data or their accounts. -- Key Empirical Fact about digital 'Assets'