Pentagon watchdog: Hegseth used Signal for sensitive military planning, calls for better security training

The Pentagon’s inspector general has concluded that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth improperly used the encrypted app Signal to share sensitive operational details, a breach of protocol that watchdog officials say could have put a US military mission at risk, according to reports previewing the still-unreleased document.

The probe stems from a bizarre episode first detailed by The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg, who recounted unexpectedly being added to a Signal group chat in March by someone appearing to be then–national security adviser Mike Waltz.

Inside the chat, Goldberg said he witnessed high-ranking officials, including Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, discussing an upcoming strike against Houthi targets in Yemen.

In the conversation, Hegseth reportedly spelled out operational timing for warplanes and drones ahead of the March 15 attack. Critics later warned that such information, shared via personal devices, might have exposed US service members to danger had it leaked further.

The inspector general’s report, due for publication Thursday, stops short of ruling whether any information was classified. It notes that a defense secretary has authority to determine classification levels, meaning Hegseth could have declassified details before posting them. Even so, the review concludes that using Signal violated Pentagon communication policy and urges more training on operational security.

Hegseth’s office immediately framed the findings as vindication.

“The Inspector General review is a TOTAL exoneration of Secretary Hegseth and proves what we knew all along – no classified information was shared,” spokesperson Sean Parnell said, adding that the matter is “closed”.