ABSTRACT
In 2016, achieving digital immortality is feasible in a variety of ways due to advances in computer science, artificial intelligence, and the unprecedented role of digital and social media in everyday life. This chapter analyses the types of digital immortality and strategies for achieving it, summarizes data and opinions about digital immortality and its impact on the bereaved, describes related policies and legal issues, and examines resources to assist with planning for one's digital afterlife. A qualitative study by Lisa Thomas and Pamela Briggs provides insight regarding beliefs about digital immortality among a group of older adults in a community in the northeast of England. After viewing films about various methods of creating a digital legacy, participants described their reaction and were asked to consider the value of having a digital social presence after death.
