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The Indianapolis Star Published 6:51 p.m. ET March 3, 2017 | Updated 7:17 p.m. ET March 3, 2017

Vice President Mike Pence reportedly used a private email account to conduct public business, including homeland security matters, while he was governor of Indiana. Records of the emails were obtained by IndyStar through a public records request. Dwight Adams/IndyStar

Vice President Mike Pence greets more than 200 employees at Blain's Fleet and Farm Distribution Center during a listening session March 3, 2017, with Wisconsin business leaders in Janesville, Wis. Pence also talked about The Indianapolis Star investigation into his private email account.(Photo: Rick Wood, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

INDIANAPOLIS Vice President Mike Pence made his first public comments Friday about his use of aprivate AOL email account to conduct some public business while he was Indiana's governor.

Republicans have criticized former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for discussing much higher level national security issues through a private email account.

Visiting Janesville, Wis., with other top Republicans to unite his party around a replacement of Obamacare, Pencetoured the headquarters of Blain's Farm and Fleet, which offers everything from tools and animal feed to hunting gear and fishing licenses at 36 stores in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa.

"I'm very confident we are in full compliance with all of Indiana's laws," Pence said. "And in my service as vice president, I will continue that practice."

Pence press secretary Marc Lotter said Friday that the personal-account emails Pence sent as governor are being compiled to be released under Indiana's open records law.

Related:Pence used personal email for state business and was hacked Related:Here are some of Mike Pence's AOL emails

"There's no comparison whatsoever between Hillary Clinton's practice having a private server, misusing classified information, destroying emails when they were requested by the Congress," Pence said. "We have fully complied with Indiana's laws.

"We had outside counsel review all of my previous email records to identify any that ever mentioned or referenced state business," he said.

Emails released to The Indianapolis Star in response to a public records request show that Pence communicated via his personal AOL account with top advisers on topics ranging from security gates at the governors residence to the states response to terror attacks across the globe.

Related:Indiana took months to reveal Mike Pence emails Related:Photo captures Hillary Clinton reading about Pence's emails

Cyber-security experts say the emails raise concerns about whether such sensitive information was adequately protected from hackers, given that personal accounts like Pence's are typically less secure than government email accounts.

In fact, Pence's personal AOL account was hacked this past summer.

Contributing: Jason Stein and Jacob Carpenter, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.Follow The Indianapolis Star on Twitter:@indystar

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Mike Pence: 'No comparison' between his, Hillary Clinton's email practices - USA TODAY