Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had the consumer messaging app Signal set up on a computer in his office at the Pentagon so that he could send and receive instant messages in a space where personal cellphones are not permitted, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.

Hegseth’s move facilitated easier communications in a building where cell service is poor and personal phones are not allowed in certain areas. It was first reported by The Washington Post.The defense secretary has two computers in his office, one for personal use and one that is government-issued, according to one of the people with knowledge of the matter. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation.

Hegseth had cables installed in early March so that he could connect a private computer to Signal, according to a second person with knowledge of the matter.

His confidential assistant and Col. Ricky Buria, his junior military aide, had the same Signal capability, the person said.

The latest revelation came after The New York Times reported that Hegseth had shared highly sensitive and detailed attack plans in a Signal chat group that included his wife, his brother and his personal lawyer hours before a mission was launched against Houthi targets in Yemen on March 15.

He had shared essentially the same information in a group chat with top national security officials, also shortly before the strikes. The fact of that conversation became public when The Atlantic reported that its editor, Jeffrey Goldberg, had been inadvertently included in the group chat.

‘Dirty’ internet line

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.

‘Another nonstory’

Trump administration officials suggested there was no issue with Hegseth’s use of Signal in his office.

“The secretary of defense’s use of communications systems and channels is classified,” said Sean Parnell, the chief spokesperson for the Pentagon. “However, we can confirm that the secretary has never used and does not currently use Signal on his government computer.”

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, called it “another nonstory,” noting that Signal is an app approved for government use.

The Pentagon’s acting inspector general announced this month that he would review Hegseth’s Yemen strike disclosures on Signal.

Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., who chairs the Armed Services Committee, and the committee’s senior Democrat, Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, requested the review. In a letter last month, the senators asked the inspector general to conduct an inquiry into whether Hegseth had shared sensitive or classified information in the national-security group chat.

Outside secure channels

The details about the strikes that Hegseth sent came from U.S. Central Command through a secure government system designed for transmitting classified information, according to an official and a person familiar with the conversations. Hegseth has vehemently denied he posted “war plans” or classified information.

But the information Hegseth did post in chats — exact launch times and bomb drop times — would have been classified and could have put service members at risk, multiple current and former military and defense officials have said. The airstrike information was sent before the pilots had launched or safely returned from their mission.

This report contains information from the Associated Press.