Secret Service failed to secure comms, risking safety to U.S. leaders: IG

The report found that agencies often used their personal mobile devices because agency-issued options were not equipped for their operations. Secret Service does not secure or manage the personal devices of agents.

Published: June 26, 2026 4:02pm

The U.S. Secret Service did not properly secure its mobile devices, risking leaks of sensitive information and potentially compromising the safety of American leaders, a recent inspector general report concluded.

The report found that agencies often used their personal mobile devices because agency-issued options were not equipped for their operations. Secret Service does not secure or manage the personal devices of agents.

Agents, moreover, used personal devices during operations while in other countries, a practice that had effectively become the norm by the IG review.

The report did not conclude that any foreign actors had actually accessed the personal devices, merely that the use of those mobile devices risked information leaks.

It recommended that the Secret Service overhaul its practices for securing devices and ensure that agents have access to devices with the functionality necessary for their missions.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent for Just the News. Follow him on X.

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