A report by The New York Times revealed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared classified military strike details in a private Signal group chat that included his wife, brother, and lawyer—raising serious questions about the handling of sensitive national security information.
The Times reports that on March 15, Hegseth disclosed specific operational plans, including flight schedules for U.S. warplanes, related to an upcoming strike against Houthi militants in Yemen. These details were shared not through secure government channels but via Signal, a commercial encrypted messaging app.
This marks the second such reported breach. Last month, it emerged that top officials—including Hegseth, Vice President JD Vance, and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz—had discussed the same operation using Signal instead of secure systems designed for classified communications. That breach came to light after The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg was mistakenly added to the group chat.
The latest revelations suggest the group chat extended beyond administration officials. According to the report, Hegseth’s wife Jennifer, a former Fox News producer, and his brother Phil, who works at the Department of Defense, were included in a second Signal chat discussing the airstrike. Hegseth’s personal attorney, Tim Parlatore, was also reportedly part of the group.