Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other types of cryptocurrencies have made many savvy investors quite wealthy - and many of them have been able to keep their wealth secret. Unfortunately, the very thing that makes such currencies appealing can also endanger the wealth of one’s heirs. Learn how and why you should add your cryptocurrencies into your estate plan, and discover how a seasoned Illinois wills and trusts lawyer can assist with the process and mitigate any financial loss. 

The Hidden Nature of Cryptocurrency Creates Issues for Heirs 

Because the money is entirely digital, cryptocurrencies can be easily lost. In fact, there are stories about investors who have had to dig through their trash after losing their password and login information. Others choose to keep their currency stored offline, on a thumb drive. However, even this presents a problem in estate planning. 

The rise of the digital age makes estate planning all the more important, because there are new concerns and safeguards you should consider. Many records, memories, and assets are stored somewhere in the cloud and protected by passwords. If you were to pass away, your family might not even be aware of these assets, much less able to access them.

A study from McAfee indicates that the average consumer has over $37,000 in digital assets across several devices. What is a digital asset? This can include personal information, entertainment files, career records, and photo libraries, more and more of which are being stored online behind a password. The study had each individual assign an estimate to their digital assets, although nearly one-third of survey respondents indicated they did not use any kind of security protection at all.

Digital assets are now also frequently stored on smartphones and tablets, making threats of attack on these devices more and more popular. Malware attacks on Android devices alone have increased significantly in recent years. Consumers should be aware of the amount of information they have stored online in addition to developing a plan for its transfer, if needed.