{"id":3177,"date":"2026-03-23T12:46:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T12:46:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ohioerc.org\/?p=3177"},"modified":"2026-03-23T12:46:15","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T12:46:15","slug":"avoid-self-destructing-messaging-apps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ohioerc.org\/?p=3177","title":{"rendered":"Avoid “Self-Destructing” Messaging Apps"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Last week was Sunshine Week (March 15\u201321), when the Ohio Attorney General\u2019s Office releases its updated Sunshine Laws Manual<\/a> to help Ohioans and public employees understand their rights and duties under the Public Records and Open Meetings laws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2026 edition includes a new directive from Attorney General Dave Yost advising public employees not to use apps that automatically delete messages\u2014such as Signal, WhatsApp, or Snapchat\u2014because records are retained based on the content of the record, not the platform it was created or sent on. Auto-deleting messages may violate the Public Records Act since they prevent proper retention and review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yost highlights the recent case Ohio v. Wade Steen, et al.<\/em><\/a>, in which two State Teachers Retirement System board members used secret, off-record communications about a $65 billion investment. A judge ruled they violated their fiduciary duties and barred them from future board service. Yost writes that such secrecy erodes public trust and harms public institutions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Attorney General\u2019s Office also provides free Sunshine Laws training<\/a>, as does the Auditor of State. In Ohio, public officials (or designees) must complete this training once per elected term, and sessions are open to the public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last week was Sunshine Week (March 15\u201321), when the Ohio Attorney General\u2019s Office releases its updated Sunshine Laws Manual to help Ohioans and public employees understand their rights and duties under the Public Records and Open Meetings laws. The 2026 edition includes a new directive from Attorney General Dave Yost advising public employees not to … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[81,80,28,21,82],"class_list":["post-3177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-announcements","tag-auto-deletion","tag-ephemeral-apps","tag-public-records","tag-records-retention","tag-sunshine-laws"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t