Overview

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a formal letter of concern to Microsoft and called the arrangement a breach of trust.
• The Pentagon directed an independent audit of Microsoft’s digital escorts program, including review of code and submissions by Chinese nationals.
• A full investigation was opened to determine the extent of exposure and whether national security was compromised.
• Microsoft said in July it ended the use of China-based engineers for U.S. military cloud support under the escort model.
• Officials have not provided an investigation timeline, and Microsoft has not commented on the new audit order.