🚀 go-pugleaf

Today we have a very interesting and sensitive situation arise -- a user  
passed away and now the user's parents would like access to the user's  
account.

This is a situation that I have not had to deal with before.  There are some  
ethical considerations that need to be understood.  I am wondering how other  
Administrators/Managers have handled similar situations.

1)  I consider a users's account to be "private" and that privacy would only  
be compromised by their own choice (i.e., lend their password to a friend, not  
acceptable under our computer usage policies, btw, but it does happen) or in  
the event of a system/security problem.  Is privacy still an issue when the  
user is deceased?

2)  The account of the deceased user may contain information that could be  
considered "sensitive" or "revealing."  And then it may not.  I am not in the  
position to determine what is sensitive.  However, there may be information in  
that account that the user would never want anyone to see.  But what about the  
desire of the parents to claim his "personal" files, much like cleaning out  
his office (this is being done also)?

3) Is there legal recourse for the parents or relatives of the user if access  
is denied?  

4) The current policy of Academic Computing is that the only person who can  
*legally* access an account is the one who signed the account application,  
which means that the parents cannot be given access.  In essence I agree, but  
shows a lack of compassion.  One manager suggested that I move all the users  
files to removable media and then give the media to the parents and then  
archive the account.  It is fairly obvious after searching through policies  
and talking with various administrators and managers that this it not a common  
problem.  Has any organization's computing policy explicitly cover this  
particular situation?  If so and the policy was to completely deny access, was  
that a decision that would legally hold water??  

I would really appreciate hearing from those who have faced a similar  
situation.  I would like to see this issue resolved fairly and ethically to  
all parties involved.  


I will provide a summary.

--
Paul S. Sears               * sears@uh.edu (NeXT Mail OK)
The University of Houston   * suggestions@tree.egr.uh.edu (NeXT
Engineering Computing Center*     comments, complaints, questions)
NeXT System Administration  * DoD#1967 '83 NightHawk 650SC SSI#755020059
"Programming is like sex: One mistake and you support it a lifetime."