Governor’s administration deletes helpful transparency tool

In a blow to transparency, the state of Indiana’s website axed a website search tool that helped Hoosiers reach taxpayer-paid state employees.

The “Find a Person” tool on IN.gov had been going downhill since Gov. Mike Braun took over, with many new hires not added to the directory.

Now, it doesn’t exist at all. The link was removed from the bottom of the state’s primary webpage earlier this week. The page itself stopped loading Wednesday.

For those who have never used it, the tool allowed you to look for specific employees at agencies. And it included their state email, phone number, title and location. For instance, many employees are stationed at the Indiana Government Center in Indianapolis. But others are around the state.

I can’t count the number of times that I have used the tool to find an employee for a story. Sometimes it’s a public relations professional and other times it’s a person who runs a specific program I am writing about.

I posted about the change on social media Monday, and numerous people reached out saying they used it as well — and they aren’t journalists, just Hoosier citizens who need to communicate with their state government for a myriad of reasons.

“This was so valuable.”

“Ugh. I use it so often for emails for my work.”

“Transparency? Never heard of it.”

I have also used the tool over the years for personal purposes, beyond my job: looking for an update on my driveway permit when building our home, finding a direct employee to answer a question on a tax return and seeking information on renting a state-owned space.

The Indiana Office of Technology blames cybersecurity concerns for eliminating the tool.

“With the ever-evolving nature of cybercrimes targeting state employees with phishing attempts and cyberattacks, the Indiana Office of Technology conducts ongoing security and risk assessments to safeguard state data and systems,” the office said. “While the Find a Person feature provided transparency and contact information, it also introduced a significant security risk by making data easily accessible to cybercriminals. Upon further review, page traffic and utilization of the application was very low, leading to the decision to phase it out, as the benefit of the tool did not outweigh the security concerns.”

The office also noted that the Indiana Transparency Portal continues to provide information about employee salaries and more. But it doesn’t say what job they do or how to contact them.

“Indiana was also the first state to introduce a broad-based generative AI chatbot on our homepage, making information more readily searchable. Using the Ask Indiana tool, constituents are able to locate the information they need quickly and efficiently. While we have seen an increase in website visits, overall page views and time on site have decreased, illustrating that people are finding answers faster,” the office said.

I don’t want anyone doxed or harassed. But these are taxpayer-funded public servants, and Hoosiers deserve to be able to reach them. On top of that, it’s increasingly likely that no one answers the phone at many state offices. It is not a good look.

My email address is posted for all to see, and I hear a lot from readers. I enjoy (most of) the interactions. Of course, phishing scams are an issue, which is why my company requires annual training on the attempts. I bet many of you have gone through similar webinars.

I would hope the state could do similar things to dissuade cyberattacks before hiding state employees behind a wall of secrecy.