If I Die - Facebook

Imagine scrolling through Facebook one morning and spotting a status update from an old friend stating she had passed away the night before.

Then imagine clicking through and getting a message from beyond the grave: famous last words about their regrets, victories and defeats. Or maybe a final paean to an old flame?
Though it sounds morbid, experts say a growing number of Internet users are confronting their own mortality, both online and off.
"I've heard it's becoming more and more common to leave social media account passwords in wills," says Samantha Collier, who operates a social media consultancy business.
"Some people want to make sure their accounts don't get hacked or have personal information stolen, and others want to leave pictures and/or music to their family."
Collier, who specializes in legal matters, was recently asked to "immortalize" a Facebook account for a client whose family member suddenly passed away -- which freezes the profile but allows friends to leave messages and comments in memorium.
"When someone's profile is immortalized, it can't be logged into and many personal details are kept private," says Collier. "They no longer show up in your 'suggested friends' for obvious reasons. Their profiles are only viewable to their current friends, too."
But users can go a step further, too, with Facebook applications like If I Die.
In basic terms, the app allows Facebook users to record or write a final message -- via webcam or through text -- and assign three administrators.
Once the person dies, those three administrators can then publicly post the pre-recorded death message to the profile.
"I personally think it is a good idea, since only those who truly see value in the service, will choose to use it. The more options and flexibility for individuals, the better," says Jeff Quipp, who runs an Internet marketing business.
According to some estimates, there are as many as 1.78 million dead users on Facebook. Other estimates say that up to three Facebook users die each minute.
"When a family is grieving, shutting down a loved one's social networks is probably the last thing they'd want to do," Quipp said in an email to CTVNews.ca.