What Are the 5 Apps That Could Secretly Lock Your Family Out of $100K+?
Most Nebraskans still picture “estate planning” as bank accounts, life insurance, and maybe a house. In reality, a huge slice of modern wealth now lives inside apps: crypto wallets, Robinhood, Venmo, Stripe, and the password managers that control them. These tools work beautifully while you’re alive, but they can turn into sealed vaults the moment you die. Nebraska’s version of the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA), Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-501 to 30-518, gives your Personal Representative (Executor) a path to access those assets, but only if your planning documents clearly authorize it. Even balances as low as $50,000 can force your family into a full probate under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 30-24,125, and that entire process gets harder when key accounts live only on your phone. This guide walks through the five categories of apps most likely to trap $100K+ in value, how Nebraska law actually treats digital assets, and how a simple Digital Access Plan can protect your spouse, kids, and business partners in places like Lincoln, Omaha, and across the state.
Key Takeaways
The problem: Nebraskans often hold six figures in digital assets, but typical wills and powers of attorney don’t address those accounts.
The law: Nebraska’s RUFADAA law requires clear, written consent before your Personal Representative (Executor) can access your “digital life.”
The solution: A tailored Digital Access Plan, tied to Nebraska-specific documents, is now just as important as your financial power of attorney.
Most people think their money lives in brick-and-mortar banks. Today, a massive amount of wealth sits inside apps—crypto wallets, investing platforms, password managers, and business payment systems.
These accounts make life easier while you’re alive, but they can become impenetrable “digital vaults” the moment you die. In Nebraska, your family does not automatically get the legal authority or the technical access needed to unlock them. That’s how spouses and kids end up staring at a six-figure balance they can see but can’t touch.
This guide breaks down the five categories of apps that routinely trap assets, how Nebraska’s RUFADAA law applies, and how to create a Digital Access Plan to protect your legacy.
The 5 Types of Apps Most Likely to Trap Your Money
The following categories create the biggest access problems because they rely on encryption, two-factor authentication (2FA), and strict privacy rules. Without a plan, even a court-appointed Personal Representative (Executor) may be locked out.
1. Crypto Wallets
Examples: Coinbase, MetaMask, Trust Wallet
Crypto is uniquely fragile. If you use a self-custody wallet and no one has your seed phrase, the money is gone forever. There is no “forgot password” button and no customer service agent who can help. Even centralized exchanges like Coinbase or Gemini will not release funds without a death certificate, court orders, and RUFADAA-compliant authorization.
If your estate plan never mentions digital assets, the exchange will fall back on its Terms of Service, which usually prohibit anyone else from accessing your account. That’s how very real money becomes permanently stuck in the blockchain.
2. Investment Apps
Examples: Robinhood, ETRADE, Fidelity, Vanguard*
It’s common for a spouse to assume they can just “log in” to a deceased partner’s Robinhood or E*TRADE account. But if 2FA is tied to the deceased’s phone, and the phone is locked, the family is stuck. The account essentially freezes until a Nebraska probate court appoints a Personal Representative (Executor) and issues Letters to legally demand access.
If the account value is over $50,000, it usually cannot be handled by a Small Estate Affidavit under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 30-24,125. That means a full probate, with extra time and cost, just to get to money that technically already belongs to your family.
3. Business Payment Platforms
Examples: Stripe, PayPal Business, Square, Shopify Payments
For business owners in Lincoln, Omaha, and across Nebraska, these apps are the lifeline of the company. If you pass away and no one can access Stripe to pause subscriptions, or PayPal to pay vendors, the business can lose value almost overnight.
Income can’t be collected, refunds can’t be issued, and customers can’t be updated about what’s happening. Even if your heirs eventually gain access, they may inherit a business that has already lost clients and goodwill.
4. Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Payment Apps
Examples: Venmo, Cash App, Apple Cash, PayPal
These accounts often hold surprising amounts of cash “in limbo.” People let balances sit for months or use P2P apps as informal operating accounts for side gigs, childcare, or coaching.
Each platform has its own rules for what happens after death. Some require you to mail or fax documents to a legal department that takes months to review. Others will only talk to a court-appointed Personal Representative and will not allow anyone to log in as the deceased, even if they have the phone in hand.
5. Password Managers
Examples: 1Password, LastPass, Bitwarden
A password manager is a great security tool, but if you are the only one with the master password, it becomes a single point of failure. If your family can’t get into the vault, they can’t get into anything.
Many password managers now offer “emergency access” or legacy contact features. When coordinated with a Nebraska-specific will, trust, and financial power of attorney, these tools can give your Personal Representative (Executor) lawful and practical access to the accounts they need.
What Does Nebraska Law Say? (The RUFADAA Standard)
Nebraska adopted the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA), Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 30-501 to 30-518, to address exactly this problem.
Here’s the key point: privacy laws and Terms of Service generally prevent companies from handing over your passwords or content to anyone, even after you die. RUFADAA doesn’t override that by default. Instead, it lets you grant your fiduciaries the legal authority to request access or copies of your digital records.
The catch is simple and critical:
If your will, trust, or power of attorney explicitly grants digital-asset authority under RUFADAA, your Personal Representative (Executor) and agents have a legal footing to work with providers.
If your documents are silent, the app’s Terms of Service control.
Almost all Terms of Service say some version of “no transfer of accounts upon death” and prohibit sharing login credentials.
Translation: Without updated language in your Nebraska estate plan, the app wins and your family loses, even if everyone agrees the money should go to your spouse or kids.
What Is a Digital Access Plan?
To solve this, we help clients build a Digital Access Plan alongside their traditional estate-planning documents. This is not a public list of passwords. It is a private roadmap that works hand-in-glove with Nebraska law.
A good Digital Access Plan typically includes:
An inventory. A list of what exists: for example, “Coinbase account,” “Robinhood account,” “Stripe account for the business,” and “1Password vault.”
The breadcrumbs. Clear instructions about where credentials and seed phrases are stored: for example, “Seed phrase is written and stored in a fireproof safe,” or “Master password is in a sealed envelope with my attorney.”
Legal authorization. RUFADAA-compliant clauses in your will, trust, and financial power of attorney that authorize your Personal Representative (Executor), trustee, and agents to use those breadcrumbs and work with providers.
The Digital Access Plan stays flexible and private. You can update it as apps change without re-executing your will, and it never needs to be filed with the court.
FAQ: Digital Assets in Nebraska
What happens to my Robinhood account if I die without a will?
It becomes part of your probate estate. If the total value of your probate personal property exceeds $50,000, your family will likely need to open a formal probate in Nebraska rather than using a Small Estate Affidavit under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 30-24,125. Robinhood will usually require Letters appointing a Personal Representative (Executor) and a death certificate before releasing the funds.
Can my spouse use FaceID to access my accounts?
They might be able to unlock your phone, but that doesn’t automatically give them the legal right to move money or manage business accounts. In some situations, accessing accounts without authority can violate computer-access laws or the app’s Terms of Service. It’s much safer to give your spouse (or another trusted person) proper authority through a Nebraska estate plan that incorporates RUFADAA.
Is it safe to give my attorney my crypto seed phrase?
Generally, you don’t hand over your live seed phrase or master password. Instead, you work with your attorney to create a system where your seed phrase is stored securely (for example, in a safe deposit box or fireproof safe) and your Personal Representative (Executor) or trustee is given the legal authority and instructions to access that location after your death.
Don’t Leave Your Wealth Locked in the Cloud
If you own crypto, use investment apps, run an online business, or keep family money in Venmo and PayPal, a standard “pre-internet” will is no longer enough.
If you’re in Lincoln, Omaha, or anywhere in Nebraska, contact Zachary W. Anderson Law to review your existing documents or build a plan from scratch. We can:
Add RUFADAA-compliant digital-asset language to your will, trust, and powers of attorney.
Help you design a practical Digital Access Plan your family can actually follow.
Coordinate your password manager, seed phrase storage, and business logins with Nebraska probate realities.
Your family shouldn’t need to hack their way into your phone to settle your estate.