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How To Send Email When You're Dead

Posted by timothy on from the use-your-dead-hand dept.

The Narrative Fallacy writes "'The Last Messages Club' is a new service that sends personal emails written prior to one's death to loved ones in the future. The messages can range from a final love letter, guidance for someone left behind, a list of instructions, details on life insurance and other financial information. 'No one likes to think about their impending "demise," but it is much better to be fully-prepared, so that there is less stress on your loved ones after you pass away,' says founder Geoff Reiss. The system works by giving each member a secure and private vault where they are able to create messages to be sent specifically to their chosen recipient. A secure process ensures that messages are only sent after at least two people appointed by the user have confirmed that you have died and other safety criteria are met. 'I thought at first that maybe it was a bit ghoulish but on consideration I think it's a great idea as it would be nice for loved ones to receive messages from me when I'm no longer here,' says a technical adviser to the company. 'It's strange really as it makes you confront your own mortality in a sense.'"

38 of 165 comments (clear)

  1. Creepy... by Annwvyn · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Though I suppose it is no more creepier than a will. Does said death-mail have legal standing?

    1. Re:Creepy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      What would really be creepy is if the "Reply" button was greyed out. Or, if you hit Reply, Outlook would raise the message box: The intended recipient is not available, and never will be. If you would like to leave a thoughtful message, perhaps you should have communicated some of that when s/he was still alive.

    2. Re:Creepy... by NotBornYesterday · · Score: 4, Funny

      Now, if they could guarantee getting me a posthumous FP on /. it would be worth a look. They could call it "lastfirstpost.com" or something.

      Of course, you might get sent to hell for that.

      --
      I prefer rogues to imbeciles because they sometimes take a rest.
    3. Re:Creepy... by The+Empiricist · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Does said death-mail have legal standing?

      It would depend on the state and the intent of the mail. Wills have traditionally required a lot of formalities to be effective (e.g., signatures of the testator and witnesses) with some interesting exceptions (e.g., the "holographic" will, a will written *entirely* in the hand of the testator). Many states have loosened up on the formalities though, but the document would still need to be a clear expression of the intent of the deceased.

      Plus, there could be some confusion if the document promised one thing, but another document promised something conflicting. Which one takes precedent? Would courts decide based on when the documents were created or when they were intended to be delivered?

      Another thing to consider is that these messages to be sent after death would probably be easier to obtain during lawsuit discovery than a will. A will written with an attorney's assistant may be a privileged document. If subpoenaed, The Last Messages Club may (or may not) fight to protect messages not yet delivered from discovery. But courts are less likely to protect such messages from disclosure than a will (although, perhaps various courts will agree to in camera review, meaning that the judge looks at the document first to decide whether it is relevant to the litigation at hand).

      One last thing to consider: your message might produce evidence that could lead to a lawsuit against your estate, and thus hold up your assets. The Last Messages Club could mitigate this problem by allowing your messages to be put on hold for a number of years after receiving proof of your death. This could help ensure that your estate has been disbursed and increase the probability of a statute of limitations being hit.

      As is, The Last Messages Club should probably be used to send those personal messages that don't have any real legal implications. If you want to write a will, hire a lawyer and do it right, don't try to do it yourself with a somewhat gimicky service.

    4. Re:Creepy... by Idbar · · Score: 4, Funny

      Sounds like a brilliant idea! What if laststatusupdate.com for example, changes my facebook status from single (we all know this is slashdot) to passed away.
      Maybe my twitter could be along the lines of "now i'm in a better place than my parents basement".
      Ok yes, it's creepy...

    5. Re:Creepy... by capt.Hij · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Though I suppose it is no more creepier than a will. Does said death-mail have legal standing?

      My grandmother recently passed away. She had made a number of arrangements including her burial, the religious services, final wishes, and what not. It was a huge help and comfort for us. We had a set of guides to help us make decisions that we think that she would have preferred. Such decisions are difficult under normal circumstances but even more difficult right after she died. My father on the other hand made almost no provisions, and it was all the more difficult to get through the situation.

      I no longer see this as creepy but as a healthy and respectful way to treat your loved ones and to help them prepare for what they will have to face.

    6. Re:Creepy... by kdemetter · · Score: 3, Funny

      Something like :

      "This is the mail system at host xxxxx.

      I'm sorry to have to inform you that your message could not
      be delivered to one or more recipients. It's attached below.

      For further assistance, please send mail to postmaster. "

      I get that all the time , from people who are alive , but their mailboxes have sadly passed away.

      --
      Slipping shoelaces ?
    7. Re:Creepy... by Jarik_Tentsu · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I can see some epic pranks happening with this service in the future. =P

    8. Re:Creepy... by Smivs · · Score: 3, Funny

      One late ./er did better than this. When Roland Piquepaille passed away, he posted a comment on his own Obituary thread. NOW THAT'S CREEPY!

      --
      Smivs on the intertubes!
    9. Re:Creepy... by LinkX39 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Creepy? I'll say. Mabe even downright stupid.

      Not at all. The summary clearly states that it requires 2 people that YOU appoint to confirm death before they will send the e-mail. This means these two people need to know about the service. I would suppose in most cases at least one of these two would be your intended recipient, meaning they know to expect the e-mail. Even if people receiving it weren't on your confirmation list I'm sure the site's intention is to warn those who would receive the e-mail before passing so there are no bad surprises.

      You may not agree with the service (I know I certainly don't, I agree with you that a hand written message is best) but just because you don't think it's useful doesn't make it pathetic. Ultimately, if people sign up for the service it will survive, if not then it was a bad idea and it will fade away.

    10. Re:Creepy... by DangerFace · · Score: 4, Funny

      This could give a whole new meaning to 'mailer daemon'...

      --
      Be smart, help people!
    11. Re:Creepy... by Joe+Tie. · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I think the main difference in how you see it is experience with death. I imagine it's creepy as hell if death is creepy as hell to you. But when you've come to see the inevitability of it, actually experienced it in your life, it becomes just another aspect of existence.

      --
      Everything will be taken away from you.
    12. Re:Creepy... by ParticleGirl · · Score: 5, Insightful

      A friend of mine's mother passed away a few years ago, and before she died she told her daughter that she had left a very important letter for her. She said that her daughter would find it after she passed away. Well, my friend spent months tearing apart her mother's house and belongings, and never found the letter. Did her mother change her mind at the last minute? Did she hide it too well? Had she never gotten around to writing it? One thing that an email service has going for it is that the message is delivered. There is no finding involved. My friend will agonize about that letter for the rest of her life.

      --
      Do something about world hunger. Click here
    13. Re:Creepy... by MartinSchou · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Was her mom a big prankster by any chance?

    14. Re:Creepy... by darkpixel2k · · Score: 2, Funny

      if I'm dead, I have no secrets of my own to keep anymore, so I'd probably want my friends and family to have access to all my stuff -- ssh keys, gpg keys, porn

      I can imagine it now...

      Timmy: I sure miss dad.
      Billy: Me too. But he left me $5,000. What'd he leave you?
      Timmy: A NAS with 8 TB of porn...

      --
      There's no place like ::1 (I've completed my transition to IPv6)
    15. Re:Creepy... by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 2, Funny

      Maybe my twitter could be along the lines of "now i'm in a better place than my parents basement".

      A better plaec? Do you mean the great basement in the sky, with no entrance (so no-one bothers you), huge pizza that grows back overnight no matter how much of it you eat, and a never-ending LAN party?

  2. I LOL'd by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    "No one likes to think about their impending demise"

    Ever been married?

    Captcha: ethanolfueledisafaggot

    1. Re:I LOL'd by ksatyr · · Score: 2, Funny

      Ever been married?

      Yes, but I don't like to think about it.

  3. Sounds like a movie by Quentusrex · · Score: 3, Funny

    Sounds just like a movie... Strange, I have a craving for Jameson Irish Whiskey.

  4. And for the fundies... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    There's http://www.youvebeenleftbehind.com/.

    Really- it's not a joke.

  5. I got the sickness by unlametheweak · · Score: 5, Funny

    What if you are undead? Does the email get sent?

  6. Stupid business model by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    A secure process ensures that messages are only sent after at least two people appointed by the user have confirmed that you have died and other safety criteria are met.

    Might as well get these two people to send that mail directly to my loved ones.

    1. Re:Stupid business model by icegreentea · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Unless you don't want those two people to know the contents of that mail.

  7. Re-inventing the wheel by coffeechica · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The idea of a will has existed for quite a while now. And your loved ones will, in all likeliness, find it a lot more useful if you leave them a dead-tree folder with all the collected information on insurances, people to notify, financial information etc. Much less creepy than postmortem emails, and less likely to end up in the spam filter. Not to mention that such a folder is useful in other situations too, such as if you have an accident and end up incapable of taking care of your affairs.

    1. Re:Re-inventing the wheel by Felix+Da+Rat · · Score: 2, Interesting

      You are of course correct,

      However, if there was an option for sending letters out at specific times after your demise, that might offer some additional value. Being able to send your kids a message on their significant birthdays, for their (first) marriage, the birth of your first grandchild, etc. Things like that might add some value, of course such letters could sit in the same folder your propose, and wouldn't have to worry about technologies changing, new addresses, or the spam filter, but would be less automated.

      Maybe the value is in sending out 'So I'm dead, you win. But I still think your a bastard' messages to folks you don't like.

  8. John Donne by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Ask not for who the inbox chimes; it chimes for thee

  9. Nothing classier than last greetings via email by iJusten · · Score: 4, Funny

    "Sorry love, seems like I snuffed it, lol. Try 2 take care of the kidz!"

    --
    Chronologically late.
    1. Re:Nothing classier than last greetings via email by Joe+Jay+Bee · · Score: 4, Funny

      Or some kind of lolcat. "Im in ur coffin feedin ur wormz".

      --
      I write bullshit
  10. Re:Law and Order by bittles · · Score: 2, Informative

    found it, last season - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1343619/ , will there ever be another original idea

  11. Reach out to more people by PleaseFearMe · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The emails can be sent to many many people, even those who probably would not read the will. Like maybe telling an old boss something, etc.

  12. Easy no fees secure method exists. by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Just print the text and graphics to plain paper, seal it in an envelop and make it part of the estate to be distributed by the executor. Very safe, hack proof and does not require any unusual level of cooperation from third parties nor fees. If you want you can leave a soft copy in a disk or a chip and ask the executor to email the message, if you are hung up over "its got to be email not mail".

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  13. Some People! by erroneus · · Score: 4, Funny

    Some people will go to very great lengths in order to get "the last word" in on anything. If you are one of those people, this service is for you!

  14. Draft by eyeverve · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Just write your emails to be sent after you die and leave them in your drafts box. Leave your email access information in your will and have someone you trust hit send for all of them. That would accomplish the same thing and wouldn't cost a dime.

  15. Security? by mysidia · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Last Messages Club is as secure as a bank.

    That's exactly what i'm worried about, that it's just as (in)secure as a bank.

    If you post all your passwords and papers on a service like this to give to your loved ones when they're gone...

    And then the site gets pwn3d by some 13-year-old script kiddie, who dumps the database and starts selling the data, what then?

    I think i'll stick with paper letters, a bank lock box, and a safe with the key in it..

    (That my survivors get a safe technician to drill in order to gain access to)

    Much more secure.

  16. Re:Why? by Joe+Tie. · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Usually, it's not for the dead, it's for the living. It's a last laugh you can give them, a last memory, a last reminder of who you were. Even if the email was filled with things I was already quite certain of, getting one from any of my dead family would be wonderful. When they're gone, they're gone. Having that reprieved for even a minute would be great.

    --
    Everything will be taken away from you.
  17. Spam by boshi · · Score: 5, Funny

    What do I need this service for? I use windows, so when I pass away the malware on my computer will continue to send thousands of emails every day.

    --
    Blog
  18. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  19. Why is this news? by mykdavies · · Score: 5, Informative

    How is this different from any of the following which have been around for years?

    http://www.deadmansswitch.net/
    http://lastpost.com/
    http://www.youdeparted.com/
    http://www.letterfrombeyond.com/
    http://mylastemail.com/
    http://www.postexpression.com/
    http://www.finalthoughts.com/

    --
    The world has changed and we all have become metal men.