The War Department Office of Inspector General concluded that while War Secretary Pete Hegseth has the authority to declassify any piece of intelligence he chooses, he did not comply with the department’s policies regarding the use of his personal phone.

The OIG has spent roughly eight months investigating Hegseth’s use of Signal, an encrypted but non-government-approved communication app. In March, Hegseth shared details of impending military operations on the platform in a group chat with more than a dozen other Cabinet officials and one journalist, who was added to the chat without the other members’ knowledge.

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