Digital legacy management and the persistence of online data after death

Digital footprints, including social media profiles, photos, videos, and cloud-stored files, often remain active on servers long after a user has passed away. Because platforms do not automatically receive notification of a user's death, algorithms may continue to suggest deceased individuals in friend searches or trigger automated birthday reminders.

In Spain, the law recognizes the right to a digital testament, allowing heirs to request the access, modification, or deletion of certain content. However, access is not unrestricted; individual platform terms of service apply, and the expressed will of the deceased can take precedence over the requests of survivors. Facebook has previously utilized artificial intelligence to mitigate painful automated interactions, such as preventing birthday notifications for deceased users, while the platform attempts to verify a user's status.