SignalGate, the term used to describe the recent scandal involving the Trump administration, is considered one of the most significant controversies to emerge during the administration’s initial months. This situation, however, has significantly boosted the visibility of Signal, an encrypted messaging platform.
On Monday, reports revealed that high-ranking members of the Trump administration inadvertently included The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief in a Signal group chat. Within this chat, the officials were allegedly discussing confidential plans to bomb Yemen. The subsequent media attention and frequent references to Signal have resulted in a remarkable increase in the platform’s downloads, doubling its usual growth rate. According to Signal’s leadership, 2025 was already a pivotal year for the app’s expansion in the United States. This week alone marked the biggest surge in US adoption in Signal’s nearly 11-year history.
Jun Harada, Signal’s head of growth and partnerships, described the surge in US growth as unprecedented. He noted that the rate of new downloads immediately doubled following The Atlantic’s report on Signal’s use related to the Yemen situation and has maintained this growth rate consistently each day.
Although Harada did not disclose specific user growth numbers, he confirmed that Signal’s overall downloads have reached “hundreds of millions.” Harada compared the current surge to a previous increase in 2021 when WhatsApp amended its privacy policy, prompting a migration of users to Signal. However, unlike that event, which primarily involved non-American users, the recent growth has been concentrated in the United States.
Market intelligence firm Sensor Tower’s data corroborates Signal’s growth analysis. According to Sensor Tower, Signal downloads in the United States jumped by 105% compared to the previous week and rose by 150% compared to an average week in 2024. Outside the US, downloads experienced a more modest 21% increase.
The Atlantic’s revelation also brought to light concerns regarding the Trump administration’s security protocols. Specific officials involved in the Signal group chat included Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, and Vice President JD Vance. The unintentional inclusion of Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg raised significant questions about the administration’s confidentiality practices.
The controversy has sparked a debate about whether these officials were using unauthorized or personal devices to plan an airstrike on Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Atlantic published screenshots revealing that the officials used Signal’s disappearing messages feature to erase their communications, potentially breaching US record retention regulations.
