Advocates warn that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is planning a crackdown on whistleblowers and victims of misconduct, pushing policies they say will end critical protections, silence dissent and embolden abusers.

Hegseth ordered a group of admirals and generals to fly to Quantico from their international duty stations on Tuesday, where he spoke of promises to upend channels for troops to anonymously report misconduct in their commands.

He called out the inspector general — one of the military’s primary oversight and investigative bodies — which he said has been “weaponized” by “complainers, ideologues and poor performers.”

He also took aim at the military’s equal opportunity policies, which were put in place to address discrimination and harassment in the ranks.

“No more frivolous complaints. No more anonymous complaints, no more repeat complaints, no more smearing reputations, no more endless waiting, no more legal limbo, no more sidetracking careers. No more walking on eggshells,” Hegseth said.

Leaders of the Walk the Talk Foundation, which advocates for military whistleblower protections in the military, said Hegseth’s rhetoric was misleading and dangerous.

“His claims are not only unsupported by fact but amount to little more than fear-mongering designed to discredit legitimate complaints and silence those who seek accountability,” said Lt. Col. (Ret.) Ryan Sweazey and LTC (Ret.) Francesca Graham in a joint statement.

The foundation also criticized a newly announced policy requiring a “credibility threshold” before complaints can be formally investigated.

“This policy does not meaningfully filter out ‘frivolous’ complaints – it reinforces the institutional reflex to protect leadership while discrediting those who report misconduct,” they wrote.

Hegseth’s plans are concerning to Josh Connolly, vice president of Protect Our Defenders, a nonprofit dedicated to ending military sexual violence.

“Being able to anonymously report wrongdoing is more important now than ever,” he said. “Hegseth’s words and actions have instilled palpable fear among many service members. It’s exactly the wrong thing that needs to happen.”

He says policies that create more, not less, reporting options for wrongdoing and misconduct are crucial.

“(Hegseth) is painting a very inaccurate and broad brush on the whistleblower community,” Connolly said. “Without whistleblowers who have been able to report anonymously, I hasten to think of how many scandals, wastes of money and various types of victims there would be in the wake of them not being able to come forward anonymously.”

Human Rights Watch, a global human rights organization, also condemned the proposed changes, warning that they may violate legal protections.

“Hegseth’s stated plan to eliminate anonymous complaints and to restrict internal dissent would silence whistleblowers and victims of harassment,” the organization said in a statement. “Such measures could violate protections under U.S. law and undermine service members’ ability to seek redress.”

A 2023 study by the Department of Defense found that one-quarter of women and 6% of men in the military experienced sexual harassment during their time in the service.

Seven percent of active duty women experienced unwanted sexual contact in the year prior to the study. Less than one-third reported it. About 60% of those who did report said they believe they were retaliated against for making a complaint.

Connolly said the proposed changes would embolden those who engage in misconduct.

“We know that retaliation is such a systemic issue,” he said. “Blocking people’s ability and creating more disincentives to report has not only a chilling effect, but sends a clear message to perpetrators that it will become less and less likely that someone would come forward and report.”

Since 2005, service members who experience military sexual trauma have had a restricted reporting option, so they can receive medical and counseling services without alerting their command or law enforcement. In 2021, President Joe Biden signed the I Am Vanessa Guillen Act, which created confidential reporting options for sexual harassment claims. In early 2022, Biden issued an executive order making sexual harassment explicitly prosecutable under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

Walk the Talk warned that if the new policies are implemented as described, they could deepen a culture of fear and silence.

“Under Secretary Hegseth’s watch, reporting misconduct will no longer be seen as a lawful duty or a protected right – it will be branded as disloyalty,” the foundation wrote. “His words signal open season on whistleblowers, victims, and anyone who dares to file a complaint.”

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