Overview
- The DHS Office of Inspector General published a report on June 25, 2026 that found widespread failures in how the Secret Service secures and manages government mobile devices.
- The audit said agents often relied on personal phones on protective missions because government devices dropped VPN connections, could not install needed apps, and lacked required malware protection.
- The OIG found the Office of the Chief Information Officer did not consistently wipe data from government phones after international travel and had no formal app testing intake, increasing the risk that location data, contacts, photos, and messages could be exposed.
- The watchdog issued five recommendations to fix OCIO processes; the Secret Service concurred and says remediation is under way while the OIG has closed one recommendation and is awaiting evidence for the others.
- The report links these weaknesses to real operational dangers by citing the July 2024 Butler rally security breakdown and a prior DOJ finding about exploited official devices, signaling the gaps could enable adversaries to plan attacks or target protectees and employees.