Vice-President Mike Pence used private e-mail while serving as Indiana governor, account was hacked

Vice-President Mike Pence used private e-mail while serving as Indiana governor, account was hacked

WASHINGTON - US Vice-President Mike Pence used a private e-mail account to conduct public business as governor of Indiana, his office said in a statement on Thursday (March 3).

The private e-mail account was first reported by the Indianapolis Star, which said Pence used it at times to discuss sensitive matters and homeland security issues. The account was hacked last summer, the newspaper added.

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Pence criticised Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's use of a private e-mail server while she was US secretary of state, saying it endangered national security.

"Similar to previous governors, during his time as Governor of Indiana, Mike Pence maintained a state e-mail account and a personal email account," Pence's office said in a statement.

Indiana law does not prohibit public officials from using personal e-mail accounts, the Star said.

After Pence was hacked in June by a scammer who sent a plea for money to his e-mail contacts, the governor set up a new AOL account, the Star reported.

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Pence was chosen by then-Republican candidate Donald Trump as his running mate in July.

Indiana law requires all records dealing with state business to be retained and available for public information requests, the Star reported.

Pence's office said in the statement that he directed outside counsel to review all of his communications as Indiana governor to ensure that state-related e-mails were being transferred and properly archived by the state.

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