This morning Facebook has rolled out their newest morbid feature, allowing users to choose which friend will be able to manage their Facebook account after they die. The ‘Legacy Contact’ feature is supposed to empower users to have more control over their accounts after they die, but the reality of it is that by choosing a ‘Legacy Contact’ you’re placing an even further burden on a loved one after you die, which is pretty fucked up.
After you die the last thing anyone wants to do is to have to go through your Facebook history and decide if they want to keep some photos, leave everything live, or terminate your account. Choosing whether or not to terminate a deceased relative’s account is NOT part of the healing process, but here we are.
Part of me thinks that the only appropriate person to choose as your ‘Legacy Contact’ is the person you hate most on Facebook. As your last act on this Earth you place the burden on your cyber enemy of choosing what happens to your cyber footprint, completely mind fucking them.
A legacy contact is someone you choose to look after your account if it’s memorialized. Once your account is memorialized, your legacy contact will have the option to do things like:
Write a pinned post for your profile (ex: to share a final message on your behalf or provide information about a memorial service)
Respond to new friend requests (ex: old friends or family members who weren’t yet on Facebook)
Update your profile picture and cover photo
You also have the option to allow your legacy contact to download a copy of what you’ve shared on Facebook, and we may add additional capabilities for legacy contacts in the future.Your legacy contact can’t:
Log into your account
Remove or change past posts, photos and other things shared on your Timeline
Read messages you’ve sent to other friends
Remove any of your friends
I’m curious as to who you bros think should be chosen as your ‘Legacy Contact’? Your cyber enemy or a relative?