Contacting Relevant Account Providers

If you are the administrator or appointed executor of a deceased persons estate then it is very important that you take the time to notify all of the relevant account providers that they have passed away, from utility companies right through to credit bureaus, banks and insurance providers.  This will deactivate existing accounts to prevent any further charges from being incurred and will also prevent anyone from using the deceased persons details to set up new credit accounts in the future. Always be sure you have the latest identity theft service protection.

Mail Services

It is important that you contact the US Postal Services and redirect any personal mail addressed to a deceased person to the administrator or appointed executor, or if you are the person dealing with the estate then make sure you contact all of the senders to notify them that the addressee has passed away, and dispose of any unwanted mail carefully by shredding it.  It is also a good idea to request that the deceased persons name is removed from commercial mailing lists, as this will stop any junk mail from being sent out in their names, and this can be done by contacting the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) and registering the relevant name on the ‘ Deceased Do Not Contact’ list.

Online Accounts
If you have any online bank accounts then you must make sure you keep the sign in information strictly confidential and do not share it with anyone for any reason.  On shared computers it is very important that you make sure you log out of any bank, email or social accounts properly, and closedown the screen after each session.  This will prevent someone from simply sitting down to the computer when you are away from the desk and clicking straight onto your online accounts without having to log in again.

Security Software
Never use a computer to access the Internet unless it has the latest, up to date anti-malware and firewall software in place, as this will protect you against hackers and malicious programs that can infiltrate your system and steal your personal information.  If you are not sure about the security of a shared public computer, do not use it to access any of your personal email, bank, shopping or social accounts, and just stick to generalised web surfing.

Personal Documents
If you need to save personal documents on a shared home computer make sure you password protect them so that they cannot be read by others.  You should avoid saving any documents on a computer that is not in your home, such as one at your college/school study lounge, as you cannot guarantee its security, and it could be accidentally deleted by someone else.  If you need to save a document in these circumstances you should password protect it and save it on a USB memory stick or CDROM, and take this with you when you leave.