Secretary of Defense Ash Carter used a personal e-mail account to conduct government business long after it was revealed that Hillary Clinton did the same on a home-brew computer server while secretary of state, according to a report on Wednesday.
Carter used the personal account for “a portion” of his government business during his first months as Pentagon chief earlier this year, according to The New York Times.
An official told the paper that the White House chief of staff learned about Carter’s e-mail situation and contacted the Defense Department to inquire about the account.
The chief of staff, Denis McDonough, wanted to make sure Carter was following proper legal regulations in the wake of Clinton’s e-mail fiasco.
A spokesman for Carter said the defense secretary realized his mistake and stopped the practice.
“After reviewing his e-mail practices earlier this year, the secretary believes that his previous, occasional use of personal e-mail for work-related business, even for routine administrative issues and backed up to his official account, was a mistake,” the spokesman, Peter Cook, told the Times.
“As a result, he stopped such use of his personal e-mail and further limited his use of e-mail altogether.”