Facebook is still popular for people looking to keep up with friends or family or simply to share thoughts or what we are up to.
The social media platform has been like a logbook to our lives since the early 2000s. It's a place to keep tabs on old school friends, shows or seeing what's in the news, The Mirror reports.
Many people are just learning what happens to those valuable records, photos and other catalogued items when you pass away.
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Friends and family have the option to "memorialise" your account when you pass on, with the decision fully up to them.
There are several different options available when looking to do this:
Ins and outs of memorialising a Facebook profile
If it's your desire for it not to vanish, it can be memorialised, which means the word "remembering" will show up next to your name. You can decide this when alive, or friends and family can ask Facebook to do this after death.
People will still have the possibility of accessing things like photos, their messages to you and posts after a person dies.
Family and friends can post something to the deceased person's Facebook page, with the correct privacy settings.
Anything the dead person shared while alive will remain on Facebook and be seen by the people who it was shared with.
This is a better option than keeping the profile active, whereby it would still appear in suggested friends for people.
Facebook now lets you select a legacy contact, someone that has the ability to use your memorialised profile.
This user can manage tribute posts to your profile, respond to friend requests, update profile picture and cover photo, and also request the account be deleted.
Vitally, they can't make new posts appearing as the account user, or look at private Facebook messages.
You can request an account to be memorialised through Facebook, and they will review and get back to you.
The process of deleting a Facebook profile
Memorialising isn't for everyone, therefore Facebook allows users to fully delete accounts for a deceased person.
In this case, all the data will be lost, after the request has been made.
Facebook requires documentation in the form of proof of authority and proof your loved one had passed away to sanction this.
These are: power of attorney, birth certificate (in cases where the deceased is a minor), last will and testament or estate letter – as well as a death certificate, obituary or memorial card.
Facebook says all users should talk about the decision to delete or memorialise profiles as soon as possible.
They said: "Please bear in mind that memorialisation is a big decision. If you're not a family member or close friend of the person who has passed away, we recommend contacting the person's family before requesting memorialisation."
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