Pentagon uses lie detectors to detect leaks about ammunition stocks
Quick Look
- CBS News and AFP report that the Pentagon used lie detector tests to investigate the leak of classified munitions information.
- The highest-ranking US general, Dan Caine, was not tested.
- Trump is said to have been angry about the reports.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The Pentagon is investigating how classified information about US ammunition stocks was leaked to journalists after media reports of a possible leak were published.
CBS News also reported on the extensive use of lie detectors to find out how classified information about ammunition stocks reached journalists. America's highest-ranking general, Chief of Staff Dan Caine, was not tested. Both media outlets cited unnamed officials.
When contacted by the AFP news agency, Defense Ministry spokesman Sean Parnell declined to comment on the reports and said he does not comment on "internal personnel or investigative matters." However, the Pentagon takes “all leaks of classified national security information extremely seriously and investigates them accordingly.” This is “critical to ensuring the security of the United States and our troops deployed around the world.”
Trump was very angry about the reports, CBS News now reports. Accordingly, very few people had access to the breached information.
According to CBS News, it is not uncommon for high-ranking military and civilian officials to take lie detector tests. However, the number of those tested is unusually high. During the tests, a device measures physical tension by evaluating blood pressure, for example. It is at least scientifically controversial whether the results allow reliable conclusions to be drawn as to whether a person has lied or not.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The Pentagon will expand polygraph tests to more officials if the leak is not cleared up.
Possible · Within weeks
Open Questions
- Who leaked the secret information?
- How reliable are the results of lie detector tests in this context?
- Will other senior officials be tested?
- Did the leak endanger national security?
