An update on the Trump 'war plan group chat' has revealed the shocking extent of the government's security breach.
Last month, White House officials managed to accidentally add a journalist to a non-secure group chat that discussed an upcoming attack on Houthi rebels in Yemen.
The Atlantic magazine's editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg said he was mistakenly added to a Signal message group which included some of Donald Trump’s top officials.
Goldberg claimed he saw classified military plans, 'including information about targets, weapons the U.S. would be deploying' two hours before the bombs struck.
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A legal complaint brought by the government watchdog group, American Oversight, stated several senior officials 'failed to meet their obligations under the Federal Records Act' over the group chat discussion of military operations from March 11 to March 15.
This includes Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, and Secretary of State and Acting Archivist of the US Marco Rubio, as well as Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and Director of the CIA John L. Ratcliffe.
Now, it has been revealed Hegseth used a dodgy internet connection from his Pentagon office to bypass government security protocols to set up and use the messaging app on a personal computer, two people familiar with the route told AP.
Referred to as a 'dirty line' by IT professionals, the route is used to connect to websites that the Pentagon's lines blocks for security reasons.
Defense department computers can connect online through two different systems: SiprNet, a secure internet protocol router network for classified information, and NiprNet, for non-classified information.
If Hegseth was attempting to evade Pentagon security filters, sensitive information could have been easily exposed and made vulnerable to cyber hackers or surveillance.
As such, electronic devices are not supposed to be used inside the defense secretary's office, yet sources told the news outlet that there were reportedly three computers on Hegseth's desk at times: a personal one, one used for classified information, and a third for sensitive defense information.
The news comes as the Washington Post reported the former Fox weekend anchor had directed the installation of Signal on a computer in his Pentagon office and had been using it to share military information with family and friends.
Hegseth has also been accused of using another group chat to communicate with Cabinet officials about other military plans, which was also leaked.
As first reported by the New York Times, more than a dozen people were said to be in the second chat, including Hegseth's lawyer, wife and brother.
Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson, said in a statement: “We can confirm that the secretary has never used and does not currently use Signal on his government computer.”
But the defense secretary's aides continue to express concerns about his judgement, including his former press secretary John Ullyot.
In a statement obtained by CNN, Ullyot said: "It’s been a month of total chaos at the Pentagon. From leaks of sensitive operational plans to mass firings, the dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president — who deserves better from his senior leadership."
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer also said last month: "This is one of the most stunning breaches of military intelligence that I have read about in a very, very long time."
Schumer called on Trump to fire Hegseth as he put 'lives at risk'.
And Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Roger Wicker, a Mississippi Republican, said his panel planned to investigate the incident.
"It's definitely a concern," he added. "It appears that mistakes were made."
Topics: Donald Trump, US News, Politics, Technology, Military
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