The use of HegSeth’s personal phone has created vulnerabilities, say analysts

The personal telephone number of the Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, that used in a recent signal conversation, was easily accessible on the Internet and public applications as recently as Mars, potentially exposing national security secrets to foreign opponents.

The phone number could be found in a variety of places, including WhatsApp, Facebook and a fantastic sports site. It was the same issue through which the defense secretary, using the Signal commercial messaging application, disclosed flight data for American strikes on the Houthi militia in Yemen.

Cybersecurity analysts have said that a communication system of the US Secretary of Defense is generally among the most protected national security assets.

“There is no percentage of chances that someone has not tried to install Pegasus or other spy software on their phone,” said Mike Casey, former director of the National Center for Constructure and Security, in an interview. “He is one of the best five, probably, the most targeted in the world for espionage.”

Emily Harding, a defense and security expert from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, added: “You just don’t want the telephone number of the Secretary of Defense to be available and accessible to all.”

Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell did not respond to the request for comments.

The use of the signal by Mr. Hegseth to transmit the details of military strikes to Yemen surfaced last month when the editor -in -chief of the Atlantic wrote an article which said that it was added, apparently accidentally, to a encrypted conversation between the senior American officials. The New York Times reported this week that Mr. Hegseth included sensitive information on strikes in a group cat cat he created who included his wife and brother, among others.