WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had an internet connection that bypassed the Pentagon’s security protocols set up in his office to use the Signal messaging app on a personal computer, two people familiar with the line told the Associated Press.
The existence of the unsecured internet connection is the latest revelation about Hegseth’s use of the unclassified app and raises the possibility that sensitive defense information could have been put at risk of potential hacking or surveillance.
Known as a “dirty’’ internet line by the IT industry, it connects directly to the public internet where the user’s information and the websites accessed do not have the same security filters or protocols that the Pentagon’s secured connections maintain.
Other Pentagon offices have used them, particularly if there’s a need to monitor information or websites that would otherwise be blocked.
But the biggest advantage of using such a line is that the user would not show up as one of the many IP addresses assigned to the Defense Department — essentially the user is masked, according to a senior US official familiar with military network security.
But it also can expose users to hacking and surveillance. A “dirty’’ line — just like any public internet connection — also may lack the recordkeeping compliance required by federal law, the official said.
All three spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter.
The two people familiar with the line said Hegseth had it set up in his office to use the Signal app, which has become a flashpoint following revelations that he posted sensitive details about a military airstrike in two chats that each had more than a dozen people. One of the chats included his wife and brother, while the other included President Trump’s top national security officials.
Asked about Hegseth’s use of Signal in his office, which was first reported by The Washington Post, chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the defense secretary’s “use of communications systems and channels is classified.’’
“However, we can confirm that the Secretary has never used and does not currently use Signal on his government computer,’’ Parnell said in a statement.
It’s the latest revelation to shake the Pentagon. Besides facing questions from both Democrats and Republicans about his handling of sensitive information, Hegseth has dismissed or transferred multiple close advisers, tightly narrowing his inner circle and adding to the turmoil following the firings of several senior military officers in recent months.
Trump and other administration officials have given Hegseth their full support. They have blamed employees they say were disgruntled for leaking information to journalists, with Trump saying this week: “It’s just fake news. They just bring up stories.’’
“I have 100 percent confidence in the secretary,’’ Vice President JD Vance told reporters Wednesday about Hegseth. ’’I know the president does and, really, the entire team does.’’
Hegseth initially was going to the back area of his office where he could access Wi-Fi to use his devices, one of the people familiar said, and then he requested a line at his desk where he could use his own computer.
That meant at times there were three computers around his desk — a personal computer; another for classified information; and a third for sensitive defense information, both people said.
Because electronic devices are vulnerable to spying, no one is supposed to have them inside the defense secretary’s office. Important offices at the Pentagon have a cabinet or drawer where staff or visitors are required to leave devices.
Hegseth’s Signal use is under investigation by the Defense Department’s acting inspector general at the request of the bipartisan leadership of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Hegseth pulled the information about the strike on Yemen’s Houthi militants last month from a secure communications channel used by US Central Command. He has vehemently denied he posted “war plans’’ or classified information.