RUFADAA in Texas: The Law That Decides Who Can Access a Fort Worth Resident’s Digital Accounts

RUFADAA — the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act — is the law most states, including Texas, have adopted to answer one specific question: who is legally allowed to access a deceased or incapacitated person’s digital accounts, and under what authority?

Why this law exists

Before RUFADAA, federal privacy and computer-fraud laws technically made it illegal for anyone — including an executor with good intentions — to log into a deceased person’s email or online accounts without specific authorization. RUFADAA created a legal framework for fiduciaries to get that authorization properly.

How it actually works in Texas

• Online tools set by the account holder (like Google’s Inactive Account Manager or Facebook’s Legacy Contact) generally take priority if used.
• If no online tool was used, the terms of service the person agreed to may apply next.
• If neither applies, a will, trust, or power of attorney with explicit digital asset language governs access.
• Without any of the above, a fiduciary may only get very limited access — often just enough to close an account, not manage its contents.

The practical takeaway

A generic will template that doesn’t mention digital assets at all typically defaults to the most restrictive outcome. Fort Worth families should make sure their estate documents include specific RUFADAA-compliant language granting a named fiduciary explicit authority over digital accounts — not just “all my property,” which courts and platforms increasingly don’t treat as sufficient on its own.

Related reading

This is part of our series on digital estate planning for Fort Worth families.