Visible / Searchable / Indexable / Reusable / Actionable — The Five-Verb Framework

Cross-cutting framework page. Source matrices: all 12 Private Pierce matrices. Not legal advice.

Definition

Private Pierce maps where private facts become visible, searchable, indexable, reusable, or actionable across public, semi-public, commercial, regulatory, and AI-mediated systems. The five verbs are not synonyms — each one describes a distinct exposure dimension.

• Visible — someone can read the information if they look (legally public).
• Searchable — someone can find it by querying a state portal, federal database, or service.
• Indexable — a third-party aggregator has organized it into a queryable directory.
• Reusable — the record can be downloaded, re-sold, or re-published.
• Actionable — automated systems can issue requests against the record at scale.

A founder's privacy strategy needs to account for all five — collapsing them into "is it public?" loses too much information.

Why the framework exists

Most legal-explainer content collapses exposure into binary public-vs-private framing. That framing fails on real-world risks:

• A datum can be visible (legally public) but not searchable (no public search interface). A WY business filing is public but the portal is CAPTCHA-walled.
• A datum can be searchable but not indexable (no aggregator has cataloged it yet). The first time a state launches an entity-search portal, the data is technically searchable but not yet indexed by aggregators like OpenCorporates.
• A datum can be indexable but not reusable at scale. Many third-party aggregators rate-limit access, charge for bulk export, or prohibit re-sale.
• A datum can be reusable but not actionable by automation. A scanned PDF in a state filing system is reusable as a record but not yet structured for automated reverse-lookup queries.

Each transition (visible → searchable → indexable → reusable → actionable) is its own exposure event.

How it maps to matrices

Examples

Example 1 — Registered agent address

• Visible: yes, in every cohort state.
• Searchable: yes in CO/DE/CA; CAPTCHA-walled (operator-declared inaccessible) in WY; SPA-unobservable in NY.
• Indexable: yes via OpenCorporates and similar aggregators.
• Reusable: yes via aggregator paid tiers + bulk-data products.
• Actionable: yes — automated reverse-lookup against the agent address surfaces every entity at that address.

The privacy implication: even where the state portal is hard to search (WY), the data is still indexable + reusable + actionable via aggregators. State-portal CAPTCHA is not the privacy moat.

Example 2 — Federal BOI data

• Visible: no in the conventional sense (FOIA-exempt; not publicly searchable).
• Searchable: only by authorized requestors per 31 U.S.C. §5336(c).
• Indexable: by FinCEN internally; not by external aggregators.
• Reusable: per the Access and Safeguards Final Rule (Dec 2023).
• Actionable: by law enforcement, FIs with consent, foreign LE under specific criteria.

The privacy implication: "confidential per statute" is a layer that blocks the verbs "visible / searchable" externally but does NOT eliminate the data.

Example 3 — Wyoming-formed-LLC member identity

• Visible: no at formation (anonymous LLC at SoS).
• Searchable: not via WY SoS portal (because it's not visible there).
• Indexable: no via SoS portal-based aggregators.
• Reusable: not from the state record because the record doesn't exist.
• Actionable: not against the state record.

But: BSA bank records know the beneficial owner. Tax returns know. Counsel and accountant know. Those are layers outside the SoS-portal scope — see Who Still Knows the Beneficial Owner of an LLC?

What this framework does NOT mean

• Does not mean the verbs are progressive in one direction. Sometimes data becomes LESS actionable over time (a state portal sunsets; an aggregator goes offline).
• Does not mean every datum has all five verbs available.
• Does not collapse to "is it on Google?" — Google indexing is one specific instance of the indexable verb.
• Does not assert these are the only verbs. Citable (the verb for AI-mediated summarization) is an emerging sixth verb worth tracking.

Not legal advice

The framework organizes research exposure surfaces. It does not constitute legal, tax, financial, or professional advice. Consult counsel for compliance-specific questions.

See also: Four-Layer Founder Exposure Framework · Exposure Verbs