Do I need to change my phone number?
December 11, 2019 5:04 PM Subscribe
I work for my local government. My work is about a hot topic that people have strong feelings (including strong anti-government feelings) about. My personal phone number is probably going to be in some documents that we’re turning over in response to a public records request. Should I change my number?
i know who the public records requesters are and they are not allies. I wouldn’t put it past one of them, in particular, to engage in doxxing or harassment, although if they did it would be pretty clear how they got that information and they’d be held accountable for it. Several other people are in the same boat - we routinely put our phone numbers in calendars when we’re telecommuting, let people know how to reach us outside business hours, etc.
I don’t want to change my phone number because it’s an enormous pain. I already don’t answer calls when I don’t recognize the number.
What do you think we should do? What have you done in a comparable situation?
i know who the public records requesters are and they are not allies. I wouldn’t put it past one of them, in particular, to engage in doxxing or harassment, although if they did it would be pretty clear how they got that information and they’d be held accountable for it. Several other people are in the same boat - we routinely put our phone numbers in calendars when we’re telecommuting, let people know how to reach us outside business hours, etc.
I don’t want to change my phone number because it’s an enormous pain. I already don’t answer calls when I don’t recognize the number.
What do you think we should do? What have you done in a comparable situation?
Agreed. I routinely request and see public documents, and much more relevant information than miscellaneous employees' personal numbers gets redacted all the time. Your local laws may of course vary.
posted by teremala at 5:18 PM on December 11, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by teremala at 5:18 PM on December 11, 2019 [2 favorites]
If you don't have a Google Voice number, get one. It takes and transcribes messages, can be connected to any gmail account. If you can sub in a GVoice # in the documents, it's a layer of privacy.
posted by theora55 at 5:20 PM on December 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by theora55 at 5:20 PM on December 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
Yeah, is your FOIA/FOIL officer flat-out inept? Maybe there's some crazy state whose laws don't exempt that kind of personal disclosure, but I haven't heard of it.
posted by praemunire at 5:23 PM on December 11, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by praemunire at 5:23 PM on December 11, 2019 [2 favorites]
OMG. I was a GIPAA (FOI for local government) officer for six years in greater Sydney. I would never release a personal phone number of anyone - staff or otherwise. It's protected by the privacy act, for the exact reasons you outline. I would push back against this, hard. It should be redacted.
Your work phone (desk or mobile issued by work) - is likely public and fair game.
posted by jrobin276 at 5:37 PM on December 11, 2019 [4 favorites]
Your work phone (desk or mobile issued by work) - is likely public and fair game.
posted by jrobin276 at 5:37 PM on December 11, 2019 [4 favorites]
I am a former elected member of my School Board. I served 12 years. I was subject to more FOIL/FOA requests than I can remember. In one, after much discussion with the district's lawyer, they wanted to release my personal/home email address that someone (not me) included in a cc on an email TO the district. It was ultimately decided that it could be redacted bc it was sent to me. Our attorney said that if I was the one who had included it, he would have likely have refused to redact it.
I had a local paper publish a private email that was stolen after hacking into someone else on the email chain. I believe the paper published my email address. I did not get any emails as a result as far as I can recall.
As mentioned above, I set up a Google Voice number to be used for School District purposes. I readily gave it out. That number was released as part of a FOIL request by someone who was suing the district and who was openly hostile to the district. Not once did I get a call on that line from anyone remotely angry, dissatisfied or out to get me. (I just did an internet search on the number and did not find it listed.)
I found that there are two reasons why someone filed FOIL requests. One, because they were genuinely interested in the issue and wanted to learn more. As an elected person, I was very supportive of those requests. Nothing to hide. Two, were people who were bullies and/or trying to intimidate the board, the district or a specific member of the administration or board. If you have nothing to hide, do not worry about a FOIL request.
I support transparency in a big way. Releasing your personal phone number is not transparency. However, as noted by jrobin276, if you use a personal number to conduct government business, that is fair game. I carried two phones because of it.
I would not change my number yet if I were you. I would push back hard with the FOIL officer to have it redacted. Was the number listed in this document as part of the work or as just a way to contact you? If it was not relevant to the actual issue being discussed, I would argue against its release and even suggest they make a note after the redaction that you can be reached at [your work phone number]. That would comply with the law and the spirit of the law.
Is your phone number published anywhere besides the phone book? Is it listed on any website such as a consulting firm website? I had an unlisted non-published number released on the internet bc I used my home number for one of my children's soccer team and the coaches contact info was published on a league website. I did not get one call bc of it as far as I know.
If it is ultimately released, I would wait to see if there is an increase in calls in the weeks that follow the release. If there is an increase, I would still think twice about changing my number. If you do not answer calls not in your address book, then you have nothing to lose really.
I would, as soon as possible, separate your personal life from your business or non-personal life. I would get a GV number or another number to use for anything that could be part of a FOIL request. I would also remember that anything I wrote in an email or text could be FOILed and could end up publicly on the internet. I would get a separate email address for this work too.
Do you work as an employee of the government or as a consultant to the government? If you work as an employee of the government, why are you using your personal phone for work purposes? Don't.
posted by JSM at 5:58 PM on December 11, 2019 [4 favorites]
I had a local paper publish a private email that was stolen after hacking into someone else on the email chain. I believe the paper published my email address. I did not get any emails as a result as far as I can recall.
As mentioned above, I set up a Google Voice number to be used for School District purposes. I readily gave it out. That number was released as part of a FOIL request by someone who was suing the district and who was openly hostile to the district. Not once did I get a call on that line from anyone remotely angry, dissatisfied or out to get me. (I just did an internet search on the number and did not find it listed.)
I found that there are two reasons why someone filed FOIL requests. One, because they were genuinely interested in the issue and wanted to learn more. As an elected person, I was very supportive of those requests. Nothing to hide. Two, were people who were bullies and/or trying to intimidate the board, the district or a specific member of the administration or board. If you have nothing to hide, do not worry about a FOIL request.
I support transparency in a big way. Releasing your personal phone number is not transparency. However, as noted by jrobin276, if you use a personal number to conduct government business, that is fair game. I carried two phones because of it.
I would not change my number yet if I were you. I would push back hard with the FOIL officer to have it redacted. Was the number listed in this document as part of the work or as just a way to contact you? If it was not relevant to the actual issue being discussed, I would argue against its release and even suggest they make a note after the redaction that you can be reached at [your work phone number]. That would comply with the law and the spirit of the law.
Is your phone number published anywhere besides the phone book? Is it listed on any website such as a consulting firm website? I had an unlisted non-published number released on the internet bc I used my home number for one of my children's soccer team and the coaches contact info was published on a league website. I did not get one call bc of it as far as I know.
If it is ultimately released, I would wait to see if there is an increase in calls in the weeks that follow the release. If there is an increase, I would still think twice about changing my number. If you do not answer calls not in your address book, then you have nothing to lose really.
I would, as soon as possible, separate your personal life from your business or non-personal life. I would get a GV number or another number to use for anything that could be part of a FOIL request. I would also remember that anything I wrote in an email or text could be FOILed and could end up publicly on the internet. I would get a separate email address for this work too.
Do you work as an employee of the government or as a consultant to the government? If you work as an employee of the government, why are you using your personal phone for work purposes? Don't.
posted by JSM at 5:58 PM on December 11, 2019 [4 favorites]
I’m a lawyer who works on FOIL requests occasionally, and I’d absolutely expect to redact that. Check with the lawyers — I bet they’re redacting it as a matter of course, but even if they aren’t they should if you ask.
posted by LizardBreath at 6:53 PM on December 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by LizardBreath at 6:53 PM on December 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
I would suggest using an app to have a second number for this purpose. I like Sideline - small fee and you can chose whether to have it ring through your phone.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:25 PM on December 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:25 PM on December 11, 2019 [1 favorite]
I think the FOIA angle has been well covered here, but if you will be handling these types of issues for a long time into the future, you may also want to check your department webpages (and check your department's policy on this as well) of staff phone numbers. For our federal bureau, which handles similar hot-button issues, any and all correspondence is directed to a group office email; we do not list a telephone number on our site.
posted by backwards compatible at 4:47 AM on December 12, 2019
posted by backwards compatible at 4:47 AM on December 12, 2019
You may also want to check if your phone number makes any of your social media findable. Hide your number on Facebook, etc.
posted by larrybob at 11:13 AM on December 12, 2019
posted by larrybob at 11:13 AM on December 12, 2019
Aside from the redaction answers above, I wanted to add that if you have an iPhone, the latest update has a feature in Settings > Phone called "Silence Unknown Callers," which basically means if anyone who is not a contact calls, they go straight to voicemail. You can still review the voicemails and return calls, and you can easily turn it off if you're expecting a call. It's been a lifesaver for getting rid of spam calls. I'm assuming Android phones may have something similar.
posted by IdRatherNotSay at 11:40 AM on December 12, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by IdRatherNotSay at 11:40 AM on December 12, 2019 [1 favorite]
I would advise against disclosing your personal phone number for any official purpose since this could lead to avoidable complications at a later stage. It is best to keep personal and professional life separate if you can help it.
posted by Lazylord at 2:14 AM on January 3, 2020
posted by Lazylord at 2:14 AM on January 3, 2020
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by quince at 5:11 PM on December 11, 2019 [25 favorites]