In this day of social media and online presence, families may wonder what happens to a facebook page when their loved one dies. Some people think ahead and designate a legacy contact prior to passing away, and then that individual can take the reigns once they submit a death certificate to Facebook. But what about those who unexpectedly pass?
This may not occur the family, but as their funeral director you can let them know that you can assist with memorializing the facebook page of their loved one.
If someone has passed away without setting up a legacy contact, you can still request that Facebook memorialize their account using this form. You will need to provide the person’s name, approximate date of death, and optional proof of death (such as a link to an obituary).
A memorialized account will have the word “Remembering” in front of the person’s name, and will not show up in Facebook ads, “People You May Know,” or send out reminders on the person’s birthday. Memorialized accounts cannot be logged into, so memorializing someone’s account also prevents the account from getting hacked.
Immediate family members can request that the account be deleted instead of memorialized. To do this, use Facebook’s Special Request for Deceased Person’s Account form. You will need to provide the deceased person’s full name, email address, date of death and the URL of their Timeline. You will also need to provide proof that you are an immediate family member — you can do this with a birth certificate, death certificate, or proof of authority.