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DoD Faces Fallout from Signal App Communication Leak
Washington, D.C. – March 26, 2025
A major security breach involving the Department of Defense (DoD) has unfolded this week, drawing intense scrutiny from lawmakers, military experts, and the public. On March 24, Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, published an article revealing that he had been inadvertently added to a Signal group chat containing sensitive military plans. The chat, named “Houthi PC Small Group,” included high-ranking Trump administration officials discussing U.S. airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, which took place on March 15.
The group chat, hosted on the encrypted messaging app Signal, involved 18 senior officials, including National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe. Goldberg reported that Hegseth shared specific details about weapons packages, targets, and timing at 11:44 a.m. on an unspecified date, hours before the strikes occurred. The inclusion of Goldberg, a journalist, in the chat was an error attributed to Waltz, who took “full responsibility” for the mistake on March 26, though he could not explain how it happened.
The Trump administration has faced bipartisan criticism following the leak. On March 25, Democratic House Leader Hakeem Jeffries called the incident “completely outrageous” and urged a swift investigation, while Republican Senator Roger Wicker, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, announced he would request the DoD Inspector General to probe the matter. Other GOP senators, including Shelley Moore Capito, suggested an internal review, though Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville downplayed the need for a congressional inquiry, stating on March 25 that Hegseth would address the issue.
Hegseth, in his first public comments on March 24 after landing in Hawaii, denied that “war plans” were shared, telling reporters, “Nobody was texting war plans, and that’s all I have to say about that.” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt echoed this on March 25, asserting that no classified material was sent in the thread. However, the administration has not clarified why Signal—an app not approved for classified government communications—was used instead of secure channels like a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) or official devices.
The Pentagon had issued a department-wide email on March 18 warning staff about a vulnerability in Signal, citing risks from “Russian professional hacking groups” targeting encrypted communications. A 2023 DoD memo also prohibited using mobile apps for even “controlled unclassified information,” raising questions about protocol adherence. On March 23, prior to the leak’s public disclosure, the Pentagon announced a crackdown on unauthorized disclosures, with Chief of Staff Joe Kasper directing an investigation that could involve polygraph tests for personnel.
President Donald Trump addressed the situation on March 25, calling it a “glitch” with “no impact” on the Yemen strikes and expressing confidence in Waltz. During remarks on March 26 at the White House, Trump dismissed the controversy as a “witch-hunt” and criticized Signal as “not very good.” Meanwhile, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, whose own email scandal dominated her 2016 campaign, posted on X on March 25, “You have got to be kidding me,” alongside an eyes emoji and a link to Goldberg’s article.
The leaked chat has reignited debates over government communication security. Military and intelligence experts, speaking to NPR on March 25, expressed shock that senior officials used Signal rather than established secure networks, which typically involve elaborate safeguards. The Atlantic’s publication of the full exchange on March 24 intensified the fallout, prompting the administration to defend the chat’s contents while deflecting blame. As of March 26, no disciplinary actions or resignations have been announced, though investigations are underway across multiple fronts.