In this day and age of identity theft and cyber attacks, publishing a death notice online may not be advisable. Obituaries often contain a great deal of personal information including detailed information about the deceased’s entire family. Names of children, grandchildren, spouses and even pets are often included and other information such as where the deceased person went to school, where they worked and places they have volunteered is common. Cyber-crime can occur as a result of this secondary information.
Another concern is that an obituary could be notice to the public that the deceased’s residence is now vacant, making it a target for theft particularly while the family are attending the funeral.
Obituaries are now most often placed online and comments are encouraged from family and friends. This adds to the information available for cyber-criminals and it is distributed globally through the internet.
Obituaries provide comfort for family and friends of the deceased but executors and the family need to carefully weigh the benefits of publishing this information and any information that is published should be kept to a minimum.
Deborah A. Todd
