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U.S. defense secretary had an unsecured internet line in his office for Signal, AP sources say

Published: 25 Apr. 2025, 09:05

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth listens as President Donald Trump meets with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre during a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on April 24. [AP/YONHAP]

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had an internet connection that bypassed the Pentagon’s security protocols set up in his office to use the Signal messaging app on a personal computer, two people familiar with the line told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter.

The existence of the unsecured internet connection is the latest revelation about Hegseth’s use of the unclassified app and raises the possibility that sensitive defense information could have been put at risk of potential hacking or surveillance.

Also Thursday, a spokesperson for China denied any suggestion that it is in active negotiations with the U.S. over tariffs. The Trump administration has sent mixed messages regarding the progress and intent of its trade negotiations. The president said it would be “physically impossible” to negotiate with dozens of countries and “we are going to, at some point, just set prices for deals.”

Meanwhile, the administration asked the Supreme Court to allow enforcement of a ban on transgender people in the military while legal challenges proceed. Elsewhere, judges blocked orders to end DEI in K-12 public schools, to deny funds to "sanctuary" cities, to deport people from Colorado under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act and to require proof of citizenship before registering to vote.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan accidentally filed an internal memo arguing that the government should change tactics if it wants to block the nascent program of tolls for driving in the most congested part of the borough.

The memo, intended for a U.S. Department of Transportation attorney, was inadvertently filed Wednesday night in New York’s lawsuit over the administration’s efforts to shut down the fee.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth attends a meeting of U.S. President Donald Trump and Norway's Prime Minister Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre at the White House, in Washington on April 24. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

The blunder came days after the administration gave New York a third ultimatum to stop collecting the $9 tolls, which started in January.

In the memo, three assistant U.S. attorneys from the Southern District of New York wrote that there is “considerable litigation risk” in defending Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s decision to pull federal approval and that doing so would likely result in a legal loss.

The department might have better odds, they wrote, if it tries a different bureaucratic mechanism that would argue that the toll no longer aligns with the government’s agenda.

AP