Pentagon staff are downloading mobile applications to their work phones that pose “operational and cybersecurity risks,” the Defense Department’s inspector general said in a report that stemmed from concern about the Chinese-owned video service TikTok and other messaging apps.
(Bloomberg) — Pentagon staff are downloading mobile applications to their work phones that pose “operational and cybersecurity risks,” the Defense Department’s inspector general said in a report that stemmed from concern about the Chinese-owned video service TikTok and other messaging apps.
Staff are conducting official business on their work devices “using mobile applications in violation of Federal and DoD electronic messaging and records retention policies,” the inspector general’s management advisory said.
The report issued Thursday is the result of an investigation that stemmed from questions by Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin last year about texts that may have been deleted by departing Trump administration defense officials concerning the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol.
Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, said “the disappearance of this critical information could jeopardize efforts to learn the full truth about Jan. 6.”
The management advisory didn’t mention any apps by name. But the Pentagon and military services have expressed worries about TikTok, banning the Chinese-owned app from installation on government-issued smartphones in late 2019.
The Pentagon bans most messaging apps, including those with end-to-end encryption and the ability to automatically delete messages. Also banned are most video-streaming apps and games, along with apps related to online dating, real estate, fantasy football and other pursuits.
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