DigitalVault – Plan My Estate | Canadian Estate Planning Guide
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What is a DigitalVault?


A Digital Vault is like a safe deposit box, but instead of being in a physical bank, it's on the internet. You can think of it as a virtual storage space where you can keep your important personal files related to your estate, safe and secure.


Just as you need a key to access your safe deposit box in a bank, you need a password or other security measure to access your Digital Vault. This helps ensure that only you, or someone you trust, can access your files. The files in your Digital Vault are protected by strong encryption, which is like a sophisticated lock, making it difficult for others to break in and access your files without permission.


You can access your Digital Vault from different devices, like your computer, phone, or tablet, as long as you have an internet connection. This makes it easy to store, access, and manage your files securely from anywhere. It also helps protect your files in case your device is lost or damaged, since your files are safely stored in your Digital Vault and not just on your device.

What Is DigitalVault?

DigitalVault is an easy to use, secure file sharing platform used by professionals and businesses to securely share sensitive information with their clients.

Security

Security is extremely important to us. We don’t use file sharing links or attachments, which are gateways to data breaches, cyber risk, and
identity theft.

How It Works

The simple design is easy to use, and has specific categories which help you stay organized. You can set access permissions and see all activity taking place.

You Control Who Has Access

Your DigitalVault will allow you to keep all your important documents in one secure spot.  Need to share documents with your executor? No problem, simple click share on the document and enter their email. They will then have access to just the documents you want them to have.

We Make It Easy For You

We will request certain documents for your file. You'll receive a notification by email and will be able to easily log in and upload those documents.

How We Are More Secure

Bank branch analogy


A branch has security guards, a safe, protective screens for tellers, likely with a hidden alarm to protect their most important assets - the money and people inside the branch. This is where the majority of cyber investment is made - into improved security, monitoring, protection - and it's why we partnered with NPC DataGuard, to complement DigitalVault standout security features with NPC's superior hardware protection.


We also use NPC DataGuard on our office computers for an added level of security with you data.

 

However, the banks know that the branch's cash inventory has to be replenished and excess has to be moved off premises for safekeeping. Since road based transportation has multiple risk factors (accidents, ambush, break-down, etc.) - the banks use armoured trucks with armed guards to safeguard the money in transit reducing exposure significantly. It clearly works - because in 2021, the FBI reported only 2 armoured car robberies vs 1,546 commercial bank robberies1

 

The bank's "cash-in-transit" is equal to a firm's "information-in-transit," and since there is a marketplace for private information where hackers can buy-and-sell, this risk exposure will continue to increase until firms deploy their own digital "armoured car" equivalent.

Armoured Car

 

So if we continue with this analogy for the "information-in-transit" with a bank's cash handling...

 

What if banks just handed strangers cash to walk the money to the next branch? That's the equivalent of using file attachments over email. The person is unknown, they could be a thief themselves, they could dip into the money, or swap it with counterfeit bills, one would have no idea. The receiving branch wouldn't know if it's counterfeit, or how much was actually supposed to be there. In the digital world, email goes through multiple servers, is unprotected, and with minimal effort, a bad actor can access that information. 

 

What if banks used a taxi to deliver cash to the next branch? That's the equivalent of using file sharing links. Definitely better than a stranger because you know who's moving the money, but you can't fully control what happens inside - what if the taxi driver swaps the cash, what if they skim from the bag? While this is slightly better, it doesn't materially reduce the risks earlier. Equivalently, file sharing links can still be opened by any bad actor the same way an attachment can be opened. (One could argue they password protected the link - fine, how was the password shared?)

 

So what's protecting your information-in-transit?

 

Why DigitalVault is so different. Since we know the traditional email paths contain so many hazards, DigitalVault is the equivalent of the branch manager taking a helicopter straight to the Central Bank's secure vault, and exchanging cash there with other bank managers or their designates. By avoiding roads entirely, and dealing only with known persons, one eliminates the vast majority of the risks that exist in exchanging information. (In case you're wondering, helicopters have 7x fewer fatalities than cars!2

It's more than just a will

An estate plan goes much further than a will. Not only does it deal with the distribution of assets and legacy wishes, but it may help you and your heirs pay substantially less in taxes, fees, and court costs.


A properly planned estate will leave your family with the resources and legacy you want them to have, not the burden & stress than most non-planned estates cause.

Estate Planning

Canadian Estate Coordinators

Why Use A Canadian Estate Planning Coordinator?

Canadian Estate Planning Coordinators are specialists trained in all elements of planning estates.  More specifically, they are certified in the specific process outlined within the Canadian Estate Planning Guide.


While you're not required to use the services of a Canadian Estate Planning Coordinator, the value you receive from having a direct line of communication together will be invaluable not only in the knowledge but the accountability to complete your guide.

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