Registry

A method for operating a registry, wherein the registry is an estate registry, and wherein the method includes, in a server processing system including a memory operable to store at least one program, and a processor communicatively coupled to the memory, the method comprising:

• at the processor:
• receiving, from a user processing system in data communication with the server processing system, document data relating to an entity, wherein the entity is an individual and wherein the document data is estate data indicative of estate information relating to the estate of the individual;
• receiving, from the user processing system, access data indicative of an accessing party to be provided access to the document data if a defined trigger event occurs, wherein a defined trigger event includes the individual dying, and wherein the access data is executor data indicative of an executor for the estate;
• obtaining, from the user processing system, a digital signature of the individual, the digital signature being indicative of document content of the document data and an identity of the individual;
• validating the digital signature of the individual;
• before determining that a defined trigger event has occurred, encrypting the document data so that the document data can be decrypted using a decryption key;
• storing, in a data store associated with the server processing system, a registry for the entity indicative of the document data and the access data;
• storing the encrypted document in response to a successful validation;
• receiving, from the user processing system, an indication of an authorised death notifying party;
• storing, in the data store, the indication of the authorised death notifying party;
• monitoring electronic death announcements to determine if the individual has died by accessing a plurality of electronic death announcements and, for each electronic death announcement, extracting a name of a person who has died and determining whether the name of the person who has died matches the individual associated with the registry;
• in response to determining that the individual has died, transferring a request to the authorized death notifying party, requesting confirmation that the individual has died;
• in response to receiving confirmation that the individual has died, determining that a defined trigger event has occurred;
• and
• in response to determining that a defined trigger event has occurred, decrypting the document data using the decryption key and providing the accessing party read-only access to the document data via an access processing system in data communication with the server processing system.