Hegseth Sends Top Secret Security Details in Family Group chat

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared highly sensitive details about planned U.S. airstrikes in Yemen — including flight schedules of F/A-18 fighter jets — in a private Signal chat with his wife, brother, and personal lawyer. None of them were authorized or had any official need to receive this kind of classified operational information.

According to four people familiar with the chat, Hegseth used Signal, a personal messaging app, on his private phone to communicate this information on March 15, the same day he also shared similar strike details in a separate chat that included the editor of The Atlantic.

The private group, called “Defense | Team Huddle,” was created by Hegseth before his confirmation but continued to include non-government individuals even after he became Defense Secretary. His wife Jennifer — a former Fox News producer with no defense role — has attended sensitive foreign meetings with him. His lawyer and brother work in the Pentagon but had no clear reason to receive real-time updates on military strikes.

Despite warnings from aides not to use Signal for sensitive matters, Hegseth went ahead — raising serious questions about his judgment and potential violations of national security protocols. National security experts say the information shared, such as strike times and aircraft types, would normally be considered classified and could put American pilots’ lives at risk if intercepted.

The Pentagon’s acting inspector general is now investigating whether Hegseth’s actions violated security regulations. Several of his top advisers have already been fired in an unrelated leak investigation, and his inner circle is reportedly in turmoil.

Though the Trump administration insists that no classified information was shared, both Republican and Democratic lawmakers are alarmed.This growing scandal underscores deep concerns about how the Defense Secretary is handling some of the most sensitive information in government — and whether he can be trusted with it at all.