Latest news with #SIGNAL
India Today
02-05-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Mike Waltz seen using less-secure version of Signal during White House meeting
New photos taken during a cabinet meeting led by US President Donald Trump show that top US officials are using a different version of the Signal messaging app. The images, captured by Reuters on Wednesday, show the phone screen of Mike Waltz, who was recently removed from his position as national security phone shows what looks like a chat on an app named TM SGNL, which is a custom version of the popular Signal messaging app. The version is believed to be created by a company named TeleMessage, which clones popular messaging apps but includes the feature to save and archive to a report from 404 Media, this extra feature may remove end-to-end encryption, which makes Signal trusted for secure communications. If messages can be saved and stored elsewhere, they may not be fully private. "TM SGNL appears to allow archiving, which may mean that private conversations are no longer fully secure," the outlet OFFICIALS PART OF THE CONVERSATIONWaltz's phone screen showed that he was talking to a number of senior White House officials. Among them were Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff. advertisement These officials are part of top-level security talks, including those surrounding the war against Ukraine and US activities in the Middle is not the first time that Waltz's handling of sensitive information has come under the light. Earlier in March, he added a journalist in a group chat where US officials were discussing military plans to bomb targets in Yemen, plans that were subsequently one of the latest photos, a message from Rubio could be seen reading, "There is time," while JD Vance appeared to write, "I have confirmation from my counterpart it's turned off. He is going to be here in..." The context of these messages is REMOVED, SIGNAL APP STILL APPROVEDEarlier on Thursday, Trump removed Waltz from his position as national security adviser. He has now been appointed as the US ambassador to the United Nations. Marco Rubio, who was already serving as Secretary of State, will temporarily take over Waltz's former response to the viral photos, a White House spokesperson responded to questions by telling The Washington Post, "As we have said many times, Signal is an approved app for government use and is loaded on government phones."However, it's not yet certain if the TM SGNL version used by Waltz is officially approved or safe enough for high-level communication. ALSO READ: You, as a Muslim, must die: US man jailed for killing Palestinian-American boyMust Watch
The Hill
26-03-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
DC Bureau: Signal group chat attack plans update
trt: 1:18 o/c: excuse after excuse {intro} {PKG} There was no harm done because the attack was incredibly successful that night. FOR A THIRD WHITE HOUSE OFFICIALS DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TEXTING PLANS FOR A MILITARY STRIKE IN A GROUP CHAT ON THE "SIGNAL" APP. THE ATLANTIC'S EDITOR IN CHIEF JEFFREY GOLDBERG SAYS NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER MIKE WALTZ MISTAKENLY ADDED HIM TO THE GROUP. [TAKE SOT NAME:Karoline Leavitt DURATION:0:04] ON RELEASED MESSAGES SHOWING THE AND WEAPONS USED... [TAKE :NATS OUTCUE:AIRSTRIKES DURATION:0:02] FOR MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST THE HOUTHI'S -- A TERRORIST GROUP IN YEMEN. ONE MESSAGE FROM SECRETARY OF DEFENSE PETE HEGSETH SAYS..."THIS IS WHEN THE BOMBS WILL DEFINITELY DROP" BUT HE MESSAGES DID NOT INCLUDE WAR PLANS... [TAKE SOT NAME:Pete Hegseth DURATION:0:08] FOR A SECOND DAY IN A TOP ADMINISTRATION WERE ON THE CHAT... FACED QUESTIONS FROM MEMBERS OF CONGRESS -- THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION WEREN'T SHARING ANY CLASSIFIED INFORMATION [TAKE SOT NAME:John Ratcliffe DURATION:0:05] BUT DEMOCRATS NOT CONVINCED. [TAKE SOT NAME:Eugene Vindman DURATION:0:03] [TAKE SOT NAME:Jason Crow DURATION:0:05] {VINAY TAG} < THE TOP DEMOCRAT ON THE SENATE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE HAVE CALLED FOR AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE ADMINISTRATION'S USE OF THE "SIGNAL" APP. THEY'VE ALSO ASKED FOR A CLASSIFIED BRIEFING INTO THIS EPISODE. {SUGGESTED QUESTION} VINAY -- DEMOCRATS HAVE CALLED FOR OFFICIALS TO LOSE THEIR JOB OVER THIS MESSAGE CHAIN. WHAT DOES THE WHITE HOUSE SAY? {VINAY ANSWER} WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY PRESIDENT CONTINUES TO HAVE CONFIDENCE IN HIS NATIONAL SECURITY TEAM. SHE WOULD NOT ANSWER A YES-OR-NO QUESTION ABOUT WHETHER ANYBODY WOULD LOSE THEIR JOBS OVER THIS.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Well, Well, Well, Here's How Conservatives Are Reacting To The Secret War Plan Group Chat
In case you missed it, on Monday, The Atlantic reported that Jeffrey Goldberg, the magazine's editor-in-chief, was mistakenly added to a Signal group chat where former Fox & Friends Weekend host, now Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, discussed sensitive war plans. "The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans" would probably be a bombshell of a headline if it were another administration (after all, Hegseth previously criticized Hillary Clinton incessantly for using a private server while secretary of state). Yet, it remains to be seen what will be done about this "extraordinary breach of American national security intelligence," as the New York Times called it. Still, the breach left even conservatives stunned. On the r/conservative subreddit, many shared their thoughts: 1."Incompetent to say the least." —Stockjock1, Conservative 2."Damn, you'd think with the billions and billions spent on defense, the USA would have its very secure messaging system only available on government phones or something." —Possible-Tangelo9344, Conservative 3."FFS…I mean, seriously, they were using SIGNAL to communicate real-time military planning and actions. And even if that was okay, which it certainly is not, they accidentally added a freaking REPORTER from The Atlantic to the text group, and NO-ONE noticed…unacceptable on every imaginable level." —RickyPickyRick, "Goldwater" Conservative 4."I read the article. A clusterfuck. A fucking cclusterfuck" —Starlifter4, Conservative 5."Good Lord. 🤦🏾♂️" —PimplePopper6969, Catholic Conservative 6."This is peak incompetence on so many levels. First of all they are violating all kinds of Operations Security (OPSEC) by doing this on Signal. [Waltz] is so incompetent that he added strangers to the mix and didn't realize it. Hegseth is also very incompetent in telling the others their information about US strike packages, sequencing, and tactics. Such information shouldn't be shared anywhere!" "There's no need for Tulsi or [Waltz] to know the exact strategy that we use. Second, this is a violation of government records. As they worked for US government and they are on government phone, their records should be kept, not deleted after X days. This is so incompetent! Anyone doing this in the military would get booted immediately." —OrdoXenos, "Pro-life" Conservative 7."A couple of quotes from Hegseth in 2016 regarding Hillary's unapproved classified server: 'The people we rely on to do dangerous and difficult things for us rely on one thing from us: That we will not reveal their identity, that we will not be reckless with the dangerous thing they are doing for us. That's the national security implications of a private server that's unsecured.'" And, "'How damaging is it to your ability to recruit or build allies with others when they are worried that our leaders may be exposing them because of their gross negligence or their recklessness in handling information?'" —earl_lemongrab, "Reagan" Conservative 8."This one is just bad. No amount of imagination can conjure up a defense for this. Button that shit up." —Single-Stop6768, "Americanism" Conservative 9."Why is Signal on government phones?" —uponone, "Second Amendment" Conservative "Rules don't apply to some, apparently. This is what happens." —zleog50, Constitutionalist Republican 10."Bro." —[redacted], "Common-sense" Conservative 11."Verify the veracity of this story. If it is found that Waltz did indeed add a journalist, he should be fired and it should be investigated whether this was an instance of providing plausible deniability to the journalist by adding him 'by mistake.' If found that Hegseth shared classified information on an unapproved platform, he should be fired. The bottom line is that if any rank-and-file member of the armed forces did this, they would be instantaneously persona non grata. There should be no difference in treatment if the allegations are proven to be true." —vertigonex, "Second Amendment" Conservative 12."Everyone of them should have their clearance pulled, arrested, charged and sent to Gitmo." —JJMcGIII, Orthodox Constitutionalist 13."🤦♂️ every fucking day, there's something new. Just stick to the fucking platform and stay focused. Don't [hire] unqualified idiots to the most important positions on the planet. Don't focus on idiotic, fruitless side quests instead of focusing on prominent campaign promises. I still have faith that things will work out in the end, but I am so so frustrated." —PaddyMayonaise, "Manifest Destiny" Conservative 14."Pretty bad look, tbh. They aren't wrong, but it's still bad to be discussing that shit on Signal and not a more secure method of communication that I have to imagine is available to the Vice President and the Secretary of Defense." —-DizzyPanda-, Conservative "What do you mean they aren't wrong? Not only is it illegal to transmit classified information through A) unapproved means and B) to someone without proper clearance and a need to know that is in fact a crime to fail to REPORT that this has happened if you are even remotely aware of it. At the very least, anyone else would have their device seized and it would be investigated by the FBI to contain and sanitize the classified spill. Yeah, it's a bad look, alright." —Madetoprint, Constitutional Conservative finally, "I don't know what is worse: that this happened in a communication the Secretary of Defense was directly party to (even though Hegseth was not the one who actually added the reporter) or that they are using freaking Signal to communicate. I suspect this is just a symptom of the larger character of unprofessionalism that seems to perpetually dog this administration. There needs to be a real investigation into what other matters are being handled so flippantly." "[Waltz] should be fired, and if Hegseth can't adequately get ahead of this, he needs to go too. When the DoD is involved, there is no room for 'three strikes.' It might have been an accident, but accidents imply negligence. These are exactly the type of weaknesses our enemies will wait for and exploit." —Coastie456, Minarchist Welp, I personally don't want to hear from the "BuT HeR EmAiLs" folks again. When top security officials feel comfortable using an unsecured platform to carry out war actions, I agree with Pete Buttigieg: "These people cannot keep America safe."
Buzz Feed
25-03-2025
- Politics
- Buzz Feed
Well, Well, Well, Here's How Conservatives Are Reacting To The Secret War Plan Group Chat
Hot Topic 🔥 Full coverage and conversation on Politics In case you missed it, on Monday, The Atlantic reported that Jeffrey Goldberg, the magazine's editor-in-chief, was mistakenly added to a Signal group chat where former Fox & Friends Weekend host, now Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, discussed sensitive war plans. "The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans" would probably be a bombshell of a headline if it were another administration (after all, Hegseth previously criticized Hillary Clinton incessantly for using a private server while secretary of state). Yet, it remains to be seen what will be done about this "extraordinary breach of American national security intelligence," as the New York Times called it. 1. "Incompetent to say the least." — Stockjock1, Conservative 2. "Damn, you'd think with the billions and billions spent on defense, the USA would have its very secure messaging system only available on government phones or something." — Possible-Tangelo9344, Conservative 3. "FFS…I mean, seriously, they were using SIGNAL to communicate real-time military planning and actions. And even if that was okay, which it certainly is not, they accidentally added a freaking REPORTER from The Atlantic to the text group, and NO-ONE noticed…unacceptable on every imaginable level." — RickyPickyRick, "Goldwater" Conservative 4. "I read the article. A clusterfuck. A fucking cclusterfuck" — Starlifter4, Conservative 5. "Good Lord. 🤦🏾♂️" — PimplePopper6969, Catholic Conservative 6. "This is peak incompetence on so many levels. First of all they are violating all kinds of Operations Security (OPSEC) by doing this on Signal. [Waltz] is so incompetent that he added strangers to the mix and didn't realize it. Hegseth is also very incompetent in telling the others their information about US strike packages, sequencing, and tactics. Such information shouldn't be shared anywhere!" "There's no need for Tulsi or [Waltz] to know the exact strategy that we use. Second, this is a violation of government records. As they worked for US government and they are on government phone, their records should be kept, not deleted after X days. This is so incompetent! Anyone doing this in the military would get booted immediately." — OrdoXenos, "Pro-life" Conservative 7. "A couple of quotes from Hegseth in 2016 regarding Hillary's unapproved classified server: 'The people we rely on to do dangerous and difficult things for us rely on one thing from us: That we will not reveal their identity, that we will not be reckless with the dangerous thing they are doing for us. That's the national security implications of a private server that's unsecured.'" And, "'How damaging is it to your ability to recruit or build allies with others when they are worried that our leaders may be exposing them because of their gross negligence or their recklessness in handling information?'" — earl_lemongrab, "Reagan" Conservative 8. "This one is just bad. No amount of imagination can conjure up a defense for this. Button that shit up." — Single-Stop6768, "Americanism" Conservative 9. "Why is Signal on government phones?" — uponone, "Second Amendment" Conservative "Rules don't apply to some, apparently. This is what happens." — zleog50, Constitutionalist Republican 11. "Verify the veracity of this story. If it is found that Waltz did indeed add a journalist, he should be fired and it should be investigated whether this was an instance of providing plausible deniability to the journalist by adding him 'by mistake.' If found that Hegseth shared classified information on an unapproved platform, he should be fired. The bottom line is that if any rank-and-file member of the armed forces did this, they would be instantaneously persona non grata. There should be no difference in treatment if the allegations are proven to be true." — vertigonex, "Second Amendment" Conservative 12. "Everyone of them should have their clearance pulled, arrested, charged and sent to Gitmo." — JJMcGIII, Orthodox Constitutionalist 13. "🤦♂️ every fucking day, there's something new. Just stick to the fucking platform and stay focused. Don't [hire] unqualified idiots to the most important positions on the planet. Don't focus on idiotic, fruitless side quests instead of focusing on prominent campaign promises. I still have faith that things will work out in the end, but I am so so frustrated." — PaddyMayonaise, "Manifest Destiny" Conservative 14. "Pretty bad look, tbh. They aren't wrong, but it's still bad to be discussing that shit on Signal and not a more secure method of communication that I have to imagine is available to the Vice President and the Secretary of Defense." — -DizzyPanda-, Conservative "What do you mean they aren't wrong? Not only is it illegal to transmit classified information through A) unapproved means and B) to someone without proper clearance and a need to know that is in fact a crime to fail to REPORT that this has happened if you are even remotely aware of it. At the very least, anyone else would have their device seized and it would be investigated by the FBI to contain and sanitize the classified spill. Yeah, it's a bad look, alright." — Madetoprint, Constitutional Conservative 15. And finally, "I don't know what is worse: that this happened in a communication the Secretary of Defense was directly party to (even though Hegseth was not the one who actually added the reporter) or that they are using freaking Signal to communicate. I suspect this is just a symptom of the larger character of unprofessionalism that seems to perpetually dog this administration. There needs to be a real investigation into what other matters are being handled so flippantly." "[Waltz] should be fired, and if Hegseth can't adequately get ahead of this, he needs to go too. When the DoD is involved, there is no room for 'three strikes.' It might have been an accident, but accidents imply negligence. These are exactly the type of weaknesses our enemies will wait for and exploit." — Coastie456, Minarchist Welp, I personally don't want to hear from the "BuT HeR EmAiLs" folks again. When top security officials feel comfortable using an unsecured platform to carry out war actions, I agree with Pete Buttigieg: "These people cannot keep America safe."
Asharq Al-Awsat
25-03-2025
- Business
- Asharq Al-Awsat
How Safe Is Signal Messaging App Used by Trump Aides to Share War Plans?
Top Trump administration officials used messaging app Signal to share war plans and mistakenly included a journalist in the encrypted chat, spurring calls by Democratic lawmakers for a congressional investigation into the security breach. Under US law, it can be a crime to mishandle, misuse or abuse classified information, though it is unclear whether those provisions might have been violated in this case. Below are some of the main facts about Signal: HOW SAFE IS IT? Signal is an open-source and fully encrypted messaging service that runs on centralized servers maintained by Signal Messenger. The only user data it stores on its servers are phone numbers, the date a user joined the service, and the last login information. Users' contacts, chats and other communications are instead stored on the user's phone, with the possibility of setting the option to automatically delete conversations after a certain amount of time. The company uses no ads or affiliate marketers, and doesn't track users' data, as stated on its website. Signal also gives users the possibility to hide their phone number from others and use an additional safety number to verify the safety of their messages, it adds. Signal does not use US government encryption or that of any other governments, and is not hosted on government servers. The messaging app has a "stellar reputation and is widely used and trusted in the security community", said Rocky Cole, whose cybersecurity firm iVerify helps protect smartphone users from hackers. "The risk of discussing highly sensitive national security information on Signal isn't so much that Signal itself is insecure," Cole added. Actors who pose threats to nation states, he said, "have a demonstrated ability to remotely compromise the entire mobile phone itself. If the phone itself isn't secure, all the Signal messages on that device can be read." HOW DOES SIGNAL WORK? Signal is a secure messaging service that uses end-to-end encryption, meaning the service provider cannot access and read private conversations and calls from users on its app, therefore guaranteeing its users' privacy. Signal's software is available across platforms, both on smartphones and computers, and enables messaging, voice and video calls. A telephone number is necessary to register and create an account. Unlike other messaging apps, Signal does not track or store user data, and its code is publicly available, so security experts can verify how it works and ensure it remains safe. Signal President Meredith Whittaker on Tuesday defended the app's security: "Signal is the gold standard in private comms." She added in a post on X: "WhatsApp licenses Signal's cryptography to protect message contents for consumer WhatsApp." WHO FOUNDED SIGNAL? Signal was founded in 2012 by entrepreneur Moxie Marlinspike and Whittaker, according to the company's website. In February 2018, Marlinspike alongside WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton started the non-profit Signal Foundation, which currently oversees the app. Acton provided an initial funding of $50 million. Acton left WhatsApp in 2017 due to differences around the use of customer data and targeted advertising. Signal is not tied to any major tech companies and will never be acquired by one, it says on its website. WHO USES SIGNAL? Widely used by privacy advocates and political activists, Signal has gone from an exotic messaging app used by dissidents to a whisper network for journalists and media, to a messaging tool for government agencies and organizations. Signal saw "unprecedented" growth in 2021 after a disputed change in rival WhatsApp's privacy terms, as privacy advocates jumped off WhatsApp on fears users would have to share their data with both Facebook and Instagram. Reuters lists Signal as one of the tools tipsters can use to share confidential news tips with its journalists, while noting that "no system is 100 percent secure". Signal's community forum, an unofficial group which states that its administration is composed of Signal employees, also lists the European Commission as a user of the tool. In 2017, the US Senate Sergeant at Arms approved the use of Signal for Senate staff. "Although Signal is widely regarded as offering very secure communications for consumers due to its end-to-end encryption and because it collects very little user data, it is hard to believe it is suitable for exchanging messages related to national security," said Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight - alluding to the breach involving top Trump aides discussing plans for military strikes on Yemeni Houthi militants. Google's message services Google Messages and Google Allo, as well as Meta's Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, use the Signal Protocol, according to Signal's website.
