Dec. 3 (UPI) — The Defense Department’s inspector general said in a report that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has used unsecured devices and messaging services while discussing classified information.
The report was delivered to Congress on Wednesday and follows an eight-month investigation into Hegseth’s use of the messaging app Signal to discuss classified plans for strikes in Yemen, which the IG concluded could potentially have put U.S. troops in danger.
In addition to finding that information on Signal that could have been intercepted by foreign adversaries, the IG said that Hegseth’s use of his personal phone for official DOD business violated military regulations, NBC News and Fox News reported.
An redacted version of the IG report is expected to be released later this week by the House and Senate Armed Services committees after they have reviewed it, CNN and ABC News reported.
The investigation was motivated by Hegseth’s use of the encrypted but unclassified app to discuss war plans in two group chats, one with his family and the other with government officials — with a reporter being accidentally added to the latter, exposing the times and locations of planned strikes.
The group chat with other officials included a reporter from The Atlantic being added, revealing precise details of timing, choreography and weapons systems planned for use against Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Among the details included in the chat were the use of F-18 fighter jets, Tomahawk missiles, MQ-9 strike drones and updates as waves of aircraft and strikes were being launched. In addition to the two Signal chats that motivated the investigation, one person told IG investigators that they had been part of roughly a dozen other chats on the app that included Hegseth but was unsure if operational details or classified information was discussed in them.
Sources familiar with the report said that the information shared in the chats “could have resulted in failed U.S. mission objectives and potential harm to U.S. pilots,” and that Hegseth “created risks to operational security” by using the unclassified messaging app for official government business.
The report itself notes that the information shared by Hegseth came from military documents marked classified at the time. Although Hegseth, as secretary of Defense, has the power to declassify documents and information, the investigators said it is unclear if he had done so before sharing the information.
Hegseth, who was not interviewed for the investigation, consistently has said, however, that he did not share classified information or violate military rules.
“This inspector general review is a TOTAL exoneration of Secretary Hegseth and proves what we knew all along — no classified information was shared,” Sean Parnell, chief Pentagon spokesperson, said in a statement about the investigation.
“This matter is resolved and the case has been closed.”
