Hegseth had 'unique' system installed to use personal cellphone in secure Pentagon office, investigators find

An investigation has revealed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had a specially designed system installed in his secure Pentagon office, enabling him to operate his personal cell phone while inside. It remains uncertain whether this arrangement violated Pentagon regulations.

The discovery was part of a Pentagon Inspector General report examining Hegseth's use of the Signal app to share information about U.S. airstrikes against Houthi forces in Yemen earlier this year. The investigation found that this practice could have compromised the safety of U.S. military personnel.

According to the report, Hegseth instructed his junior military assistant to request and supervise the installation of a unique system allowing the secretary to access and control his personal phone from within his secure office. The device, whose prototype images were redacted, was set up in late February 2025 and connected the phonelocated outside the officeto a keyboard, mouse, and monitor inside, effectively mirroring the phones content.

While Pentagon policy prohibits personal and government mobile devices in secure areas, the report notes that it could not determine if the secretary's setup fully complied with these rules because the system was quietly removed by late April 2025. Hegseth confirmed he requested the system, stating that it was intended to facilitate non-official communications during the workday while maintaining security.

The Defense Secretary Communications Team explained that the system did not physically violate the no-cellphone rule in secure spaces and was considered compliant with Department of Defense information security standards.

The investigation into Hegseth's use of Signal was prompted after The Atlantic's editor-in-chief was inadvertently added to group chats containing classified information about strike timing and assets. The report concluded that sharing such sensitive data via a personal device exposed U.S. forces to potential danger if intercepted by adversaries.

Although Hegseth previously stated that no operational details threatened troops, the inspector general emphasized that his actions posed risks to mission security and could have jeopardized U.S. operations and personnel.

Author: Harper Simmons