MUMBAI — When 32-year-old software engineer Arjun Mehta died unexpectedly in a road accident last November, his family faced an unexpected challenge: gaining access to his digital life. His Gmail account held years of personal and professional correspondence, his social media profiles remained active, and his cryptocurrency wallet—containing assets worth over ₹12 lakh—was locked behind a password only he knew. Despite holding a legal heir certificate, his parents were denied access by Google, Meta, and a leading Indian crypto exchange, all citing privacy policies and the lack of a clear legal framework for digital inheritance.
Mehta’s case is not unique. With over 800 million internet users in India, the country is grappling with a growing but largely unregulated question: What happens to a person’s online presence after death? Unlike physical assets, which are governed by inheritance laws like the Indian Succession Act, digital assets—emails, social media accounts, cloud storage, and even gaming avatars—exist in a legal gray zone. While some platforms offer legacy tools, such as Facebook’s “memorialization” feature or Google’s “Inactive Account Manager,” these are voluntary and often require users to opt in during their lifetime. For the vast majority who don’t, families are left navigating a maze of corporate policies, data protection laws, and bureaucratic hurdles.
The issue gained national attention in 2025 when the Delhi High Court ruled in Rajesh Kumar v. Union of India that digital assets should be treated as part of a deceased person’s estate. The judgment directed the central government to frame guidelines for the transfer of digital assets to legal heirs, citing the “emotional and financial value” of such data. However, nearly a year later, no such guidelines have been issued. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) told Herald Express that it is “examining the matter in consultation with stakeholders,” but declined to provide a timeline.
Meanwhile, families continue to struggle. In Bengaluru, 58-year-old retired teacher Sunita Reddy spent six months trying to recover her son’s cloud-stored photographs after his death in 2024. “The company said they could not verify my relationship, even though I had his birth certificate and our family photos,” she said. “They kept asking for a court order, which would have cost more than the emotional value of the pictures.” Reddy eventually gave up, calling the process “dehumanizing.”
Legal experts say the problem stems from a clash between India’s data protection laws and inheritance rights. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP), 2023, prioritizes user privacy even after death, requiring explicit consent for data access. However, the law does not address how consent can be obtained posthumously. “The DPDP was designed to protect living individuals, not to facilitate inheritance,” said cyber law expert Pavan Duggal. “This creates a paradox where the right to privacy outlives the person, but the right to property does not.”
Platforms, too, are caught in the crossfire. Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, allows users to appoint a “legacy contact” to manage their account after death, but only 12% of Indian users have enabled the feature, according to internal company data. Google’s Inactive Account Manager, which lets users specify what happens to their data if their account becomes inactive, has similarly low adoption rates. “We comply with local laws, but in India, those laws are unclear,” a Meta spokesperson said. “We urge users to plan ahead, but we also recognize that most don’t.”
The financial stakes are rising. A 2025 report by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) estimated that unclaimed digital assets—including cryptocurrencies, digital wallets, and loyalty points—could be worth over ₹5,000 crore. Yet, without a legal framework, banks and exchanges are reluctant to transfer these assets to heirs. In 2024, the RBI issued an advisory cautioning financial institutions against releasing digital assets without a court order, further complicating matters.
Some startups are stepping into the void. Companies like Digital Will and AfterVault offer services to store passwords and digital asset details, which can be released to designated heirs after death. However, these services rely on users proactively documenting their digital lives—a step most Indians have not taken. “We see a lot of interest from NRIs and tech-savvy professionals, but the average user doesn’t think about this until it’s too late,” said Ankit Sharma, founder of AfterVault.
Analysis:
The digital afterlife dilemma highlights a broader tension between privacy and property rights in the digital age. While the DPDP Act protects personal data, it does not account for the fact that digital assets—whether sentimental or financial—often hold value for families. The Delhi High Court’s 2025 ruling was a step toward recognizing this, but the lack of follow-through from the government suggests a low priority for the issue.
For families, the emotional toll is compounded by bureaucratic obstacles. Unlike physical assets, which can be claimed with a death certificate and legal heir document, digital assets often require court orders—a costly and time-consuming process. This disparity disproportionately affects middle-class families, who may lack the resources to navigate legal hurdles.
The delay in government action also reflects a lack of consensus among stakeholders. Tech companies argue that releasing data without explicit consent could violate privacy laws, while legal experts counter that inheritance rights should extend to digital property. Until this debate is resolved, millions of Indians will remain locked out of their loved ones’ digital legacies.
Story synopsis gathered from: [Times of India](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/your-final-login-what-happens-to-your-online-life-after-death/articleshow/132386830.cms) — source.
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Story synopsis gathered from: Times of India – Top Stories — source.
