Legacy access
Leave your family a list of your accounts, in case something happens to you
Legacy access gives the people you trust a read-only list of every account you own and owe, with the latest balances and your notes. It only opens after you have not signed in for a period you choose, 3 months by default, and it locks again the moment you sign back in. They need your email and an access code; they never get your login.
The problem it solves
When someone dies or becomes unable to manage their money, the people left behind usually start with a question nobody wrote down the answer to: which accounts exist? A pension from an old job, a savings account abroad, a loan, a brokerage app on a phone nobody can unlock. Estate administrators spend weeks reconstructing that list from post and bank statements, and some accounts are never found.
If you already keep your balances in NetWorthTrackr, that list exists. Legacy access lets you hand it on, with your own words attached, without sharing a password and without anyone seeing it while you are still around.
How it works
- Turn it on in Settings. Open Settings, choose Legacy access and turn it on. It is off until you do.
- Get an access code. Let the app make a 16-character code, or choose your own of at least 16 letters and numbers. A generated code is shown once, and you can print it on an instructions card.
- Choose how long you must be away. Pick 3, 6 or 12 months without signing in. Three months is the default and the shortest option.
- Write notes for your family. Add a general note and a note on each account: where it is held, who to call, where the paperwork is. Never passwords.
- Give the code to people you trust. They need your email address and the code. Keep the printed card with your will or other important papers.
If you stop signing in for longer than the period you chose, someone with your email and the code can open the summary at networthtrackr.com/legacy. Using the app or signing in on any device starts the clock again, and an open summary locks again as soon as you sign back in.
What your family sees, and what they never get
They see
- Every account with its latest balance and the date you recorded it
- Each balance in its own currency, plus totals in yours
- Net worth, assets and liabilities
- Your note to them, and your note on each account
Balances older than a year are flagged, so nobody mistakes an old figure for today’s.
They never get
- Your login, or any way to change or delete anything
- Your balance history, portfolio positions or settings
- Anything at all while you are still signing in
- A way to move money: the app has no bank connection
The page is read-only and closes after 30 minutes. They can print it or save it as a PDF first.
How it is kept safe
The code is never stored. We keep only a scrambled copy (an scrypt hash), so not even we can read it back, and making a new code cancels the old one immediately.
Every try is written to an access log that only you can see, with the time and the kind of device. After 5 failed tries the page pauses for 60 minutes. A wrong code, an unknown email and a page that is still locked all get the same reply, so nobody can use it to find out whether someone has an account. If someone uses the right code while you are active, you see a notice the next time you open the app.
The summary page is never indexed by search engines and ends after 30 minutes.
What it is not
Legacy access is not a will and has no legal standing. It does not give anyone authority over your accounts, and it cannot move money. Think of it as the list your executor will wish they had: keep a proper will, tell your executor the summary exists, and let the institutions on the list do the rest.
Legacy access versus the usual ways of leaving a list
| Legacy access | A list in a drawer or a shared password | |
|---|---|---|
| Up to date | As current as your last balance update, with dates shown | As old as the day you wrote it |
| Seen while you are alive | No. It opens only after you have been away for your chosen period | By anyone who finds it, any time |
| Gives control of your accounts | No. Read-only, no login, cannot move money | A shared password gives full control |
| You know when someone looks | Every try is in your access log | No |
| Works with no internet | No, but they can print it or save a PDF | Yes, paper wins here |
Paper still has one advantage: it needs nothing to read it. The best setup is both. Keep a will and a short paper note that says where to look, and let Legacy access carry the details that change every month.
Common questions
Keep one up-to-date list of every account, where it is held and who to contact, and make sure someone you trust can reach it. In NetWorthTrackr, Legacy access does this: it gives the people you choose a read-only list of your accounts, latest balances and notes, but only after you have not signed in for 3, 6 or 12 months.
No. The summary stays locked while you keep signing in or using the app. It opens only after you have been away for the period you chose, and it locks again as soon as you sign back in. If someone tries the right code while you are active, you see a notice in the app.
Your email address and your access code, entered at networthtrackr.com/legacy. They do not need an account. You can print an instructions card with the code and the address to keep with your will.
No. The page is read-only, and NetWorthTrackr has no connection to any bank, so there is nothing to move money with. It shows balances you recorded and the notes you wrote.
Make a new one in Settings. The old code stops working immediately. You can let the app generate a code or choose your own of at least 16 letters and numbers.
No. It is a list of what exists and your notes about it. It has no legal standing and gives nobody authority over your accounts. Keep a proper will and tell your executor the summary exists.
Where each account is held, who to call, policy or reference numbers that are not secret, where the paperwork is, and anything about beneficiaries or insurance. Never passwords, PINs or full card numbers: anyone with the code can read the notes.
No. Legacy access is free, like the rest of NetWorthTrackr.