TikTok added an optional setting that lets users decide what happens to their account once they die, either by naming a legacy contact to look after it or by having the profile deleted, according to Andrew Hutchinson at Social Media Today. A legacy contact can update the bio, accept new friend requests, download copies of posts, adjust privacy settings, and ask for the account to be deactivated, and users pick which of those permissions to hand over. What a legacy contact can’t do is log in, edit or delete anything already posted, read messages or comments, or remove existing friends. Deleting an account outright still takes a request from a family member or legal representative, along with proof of the relationship and a death certificate.
