How do I manage a loved one's TikTok account after their death?

The social platform TikTok is growing by leaps and bounds. In 2023, its users in France will reach nearly 14.9 million monthly active ^users1. On a global level, the number reaches 1.2 billion!

All these figures show the dynamism of this essential platform. For this reason, it is very possible that someone close to you has an account on TikTok. It is indeed the ideal place to consult and exchange attractive and exciting video content. However, if a family member or friend passes away, the question of how to manage the deceased's account becomes an unavoidable issue.

While classic inheritance is often discussed, this is unfortunately not the case for digital inheritance. Yet, it is one of the major issues of the digital age. In this article, we will guide you to easily manage the TikTok account of a deceased relative.

After the death of a loved one, what happens to their TikTok account?

If one of your loved ones dies, then the account he or she had on the social network persists on the Internet. This may seem harmless. However, this situation can cause various problems. 

To begin with, it is obvious that the presence of the account after the death of the deceased can be difficult to bear for his relatives. The content posted by the deceased user is visible as well as the messages that could continue to be sent by subscribers. In addition, receiving messages via TikTok may cause a notification to appear on one of your loved one's devices. All of these events can aggravate the grief following the death of the deceased and make the necessary mourning phase difficult.

Moreover, the social network account of a deceased person can always be targeted by malicious people. To avoid account hacking or identity theft, it is therefore necessary to act.

‍

What are the possibilities offered by the platform?

Each social platform offers different possibilities to its users regarding the use of their account after their death. For example, Facebook, Instagram or TikTok accounts need to be managed individually, as their respective regulations are different.

‍

-----------------------------

¹ Digimind, TikTok in key figures and statistics in France and in the World in 2023

‍

It is clear that TikTok offers little latitude in the decisions that can be made. Following the death of a loved one, it is impossible to request the deletion of the account or to transform the account into a memorial account. 

The only person who is able to act on his TikTok account is the user, while he is alive, or a relative who has his access codes.

Automatic username change

In addition, TikTok will act on its own if no action is taken on the account in question for more than 180 days.

The platform then changes the username to a random name. This name is made of numbers. Despite this change, the account remains online. Therefore, all the contents of the deceased remain online. 

Moreover, the deceased person's subscribers cannot know what happened because, as Tiktok states, " the fact that an account is inactive is not publicly displayed^.

For all these reasons, it is essential to act before his death.

-----------------------------

² TikTok Support, Inactive Account Policy, accessed February 2023

‍

Why prepare the succession of your digital assets? 

There are several reasons why we advise you to prepare the succession of your digital assets in advance. Indeed, the absence of digital wills can confront the entourage as well as all the online assets with complications. This is particularly the case for the TikTok account.

Avoiding identity theft

Hackers are on the lookout. They know that a random sequence of numbers means that the user is inactive. They will therefore be tempted to carry out an identity theft. Note that this can come from ill-intentioned individuals whose motivations can vary greatly: desire to defraud subscribers, desire to tarnish the image of the deceased, etc. 

Protecting monetization

Content creators can protect their monetization by planning their estate. Some of their content on the platform is likely to generate income. By transferring your digital heritage, you can allow your loved ones to benefit from the monetization of content created during your lifetime.

Indeed, an abandoned account can be used by hackers for identity theft. In addition, malicious individuals can use these different accounts to hold the image of the missing person. 

For all these reasons, it is very important to prepare one's estate during one's lifetime. Moreover, it facilitates the procedures for the relatives. As we have seen with regard to Netflix, the process is quite simple if you have in your possession the access codes legally transmitted by the deceased.

The method for transferring one's digital property and assets

Fortunately, there are online solutions that allow you to prepare the transfer of your digital assets. SOLAL TECH allows you to centralize, secure and transmit your digital assets.

By creating an account on the platform, you will be accompanied by the site team, but also by a notary partner SOLAL, mastering the issues related to digital identity. Preserve your brand

If the user of the TikTok account is a business owner or a creator, his reputation is a major issue. Especially since on a platform like TikTok, the presence of personal content can be used by certain individuals to tarnish the brand image or put pressure on their relatives.

Make things easier for those around you 

Finally, one of the good reasons to prepare your estate is simply to facilitate this difficult moment for your loved ones. The loss of a loved one is already a difficult step. It is therefore preferable to make things easier by planning in advance what happens to the TikTok account and other digital assets.

Achieving smooth digital transmission 

To avoid these pitfalls, it is obvious that the best solution is to anticipate the transmission of one's digital assets, including one's social network accounts.

In this regard, solutions exist. Indeed, the SOLAL TECH platform, specialized in the transmission of digital assets, is able to assist the testator and his beneficiaries in these steps.

This online solution centralizes a user's digital assets, secures this data and ensures the transmission of assets as well as the realization of last wishes. In addition, a notary partner ensures that the law is respected and that everything is done according to the wishes of the deceased.

‍

Thus, creating a SOLAL TECH account is the best way to protect your digital assets and your family.

They will be helped in this difficult moment. The legal expertise of the SOLAL notary will then be very relevant to answer all their questions and facilitate the transmission.