Helpful Hint – Best Practice: Digital Password Keeper
Who can access your parish, school, office, or Catholic agency social media accounts?
If something happens to you, will the parish, school, office of agency be able to continue posting?
These questions may seem morbid, but they are essential as we never know when circumstances can change in our lives that might preclude us from continuing to post to the platforms. Yet, the ministry must go on! Therefore, it is important to have access information available “just in case.”
In the attachments to the June Communique’, you can find a form called the “Digital Password Keeper” which is a tool you can use to document your accounts access information. Every pastor should have a copy of this or similar for their parish(es), every principal should have a copy for their school, every director/supervisor should have one for each office or agency. It would be best to keep it in a locked file drawer. It should be reviewed annually as platforms often require changes in passwords or verification processes.
Here is an example (with fake identification information added for security purposes):
DIGITAL PASSWORD KEEPER
Parish/School/Organization Diocesan Social Media Date May 8, 2023
(Note: Comments should include any PIN, security questions, etc. needed to access the account.)
| PLATFORM | |
| Web address/URL | https://www.facebook.com/DOYoungstown |
| Primary Email | cindee@doy.org |
| User name | Social Cindee |
| Password | Secure2me4ministry! |
| 2 Step verification number | 330-555-1234 |
| Name of owner for above | Cindee Case |
| Additional email addressed linked to account | n/a |
| Date account created | 3.1.2021 |
| Comments | This is a Facebook “page” linked to account name “Cindee Social Media” and has Admin approval for Name One and Name Two as well. |
I would then repeat this process for our other social media accounts. It would also be a good idea to document access information for other parish, school, office and agency online activities, such as websites, photo storage sites, blogs, etc. If there is an electronic program, application (APP) or site being used, leaving access information is a service to your organization. Thank you for your responsible stewardship! And keep up the splendid work evangelizing and engaging Catholics in the Digital World!
If you have other ideas for the monthly Helpful Hints, please, contact Cindee Case, ccase@youngstowndiocese.org. (You may also email Cindee to request a Word document version of this form.)
