Pete Hegseth reportedly had unsecured office internet line to connect to Signal

Defense chief had line set up to bypass official security protocols and use Signal app on personal computer, AP says

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. File picture: Alex Brandon/AP

Pete Hegseth, the US defense secretary, had an unsecured internet connection set up in his Pentagon office so that he could bypass government security protocols and use the Signal messaging app on a personal computer, two people familiar with the line told the Associated Press.

ABC News also reported that Hegseth had what is known as a “dirty line” — what IT professionals call a commercial internet line that is used to connect to websites blocked by the Pentagon’s unclassified and classified lines. Defense department computers connect to the internet through two different systems: SiprNet — or secure internet protocol router network, which is the Pentagon’s network for classified information — and NiprNet — the non-classified internet protocol router network, which handles unclassified information.