How to Access a Deceased Loved One’s Phone or Device

For many of us, our entire lives are inside our smartphones, computers and tablets. We store work-related and financial matters, upcoming appointments, to-do lists and reminders, and even emergency and health information on these devices. These devices also house our personal lives, like photos and videos of our family and friends, and our social media accounts.

You could find out a lot about a person just by scrolling through their smartphone or looking at the calendar or documents on their laptop. But how can you find out anything if the device is secured with a passcode that only the owner knows? You can’t. And in the event of an emergency or death, you’ll probably need to.

In the event of an emergency, getting ahold of a person’s medical information or emergency contacts is critical, and there’s only so much you can do on a locked phone. One thing you can do to be prepared is provide loved ones with a master contact directory.

If you’re familiar with the term ICE, which stands for In Case of Emergency, you might have a parent or significant other with “ICE” saved as their contact name. This is a smart idea and can be useful in an emergency or if you lose your phone. However, a person’s contacts can’t be accessed if their phone is secured with a passcode.

If you have an iPhone, an emergency 911 call can be made without unlocking the device. You simply slide to unlock and tap “Emergency” in the bottom left corner of the screen. Most smartphones allow a user to dial 911 on a locked device.

A newer feature Apple Inc. developed is the Medical ID. Medical ID allows the user to enter personal medical information that may be crucial in an emergency, such as allergies, medical conditions, and medications, as well as emergency contacts. The user can set up their Medical ID in Settings. Once set up, the Medical ID can be accessed without unlocking the device. It will appear in the bottom left corner of the screen after tapping “Emergency”. This feature is another way to allow access to your medical information and emergency contacts if need be.

If your smartphone doesn’t have this feature, that’s OK. There are many smartphone apps that allow you to create custom wallpapers with medical information and emergency contact numbers. ICE (In Case of Emergency) from Minute Apps LLC for iPhone and ICE Standard from About The Kids Foundation for iPhone or Android allow you to create a custom background of your information.

Accessing emergency contacts and medical information is crucial to getting one the care they need. When a loved one passes away, the information you need is much harder to get when it’s secured inside their phone or computer.

In the event of a death, being able to access more than just medical and emergency information is crucial. Work, bills, photos, email accounts, passwords, health records and everything you need when settling one’s affairs are all protected by a password. With privacy rules and regulations, chances are you won’t be able to access the device unless you have the password.

Computer and smartphone retailers can’t unlock or reset the password for a device for anybody except the user. They may be able to erase the device to unlock it, but that option is not helpful when you need to gain access to the information inside.

These situations can easily be avoided. If these devices aren’t shared by more than one user, tell somebody you trust how to unlock them. If it’s somebody you trust, you shouldn’t need to worry about that person misusing the information.

Getting into the device itself is one thing, but what about accessing accounts once inside? Whether you’re expecting an emergency situation to occur or not, it’s a good idea to leave instructions for people you trust on how to get into your personal documents and accounts as well.

The easiest and safest way to do this? Store this information in your My Life & Wishes account. My Life & Wishes helps you create a digital record of this information to ensure that your loved ones can access it when they need it.