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Some in administration use personal phones, despite advice

FILE - In this June 12, 2017 file photo, White House Senior Advisers Steve Bannon, left, and Jared Kushner attend a Cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington. Differences between Hillary Clinton’s email practices while secretary of state and Revelations that officials in the Trump administration have used private email accounts for White House business have prompted charges of hypocrisy after Donald Trump made a campaign issue of the email practices by Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. Despite the uproar over the practice during the campaign, key Trump officials began using their own private email accounts just weeks after the election that they concede were sometimes used for official communication. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)
FILE - In this June 12, 2017 file photo, White House Senior Advisers Steve Bannon, left, and Jared Kushner attend a Cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington. Differences between Hillary Clinton’s email practices while secretary of state and Revelations that officials in the Trump administration have used private email accounts for White House business have prompted charges of hypocrisy after Donald Trump made a campaign issue of the email practices by Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. Despite the uproar over the practice during the campaign, key Trump officials began using their own private email accounts just weeks after the election that they concede were sometimes used for official communication. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) FILE - In this June 12, 2017 file photo, White House Senior Advisers Steve Bannon, left, and Jared Kushner attend a Cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington. Differences between Hillary Clinton’s email practices while secretary of state and Revelations that officials in the Trump administration have used private email accounts for White House business have prompted charges of hypocrisy after Donald Trump made a campaign issue of the email practices by Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. Despite the uproar over the practice during the campaign, key Trump officials began using their own private email accounts just weeks after the election that they concede were sometimes used for official communication. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

By Associated Press 1 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) – White House officials are clearly instructed not to use their personal phones for official business. But some aides appear to have done it anyway, and it’s getting fresh scrutiny along with questions about the use of personal email accounts.

The inquiries into private communication could prove uncomfortable for President Donald Trump, who relentlessly attacked Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton for her use of a private email account and server during her time as secretary of state.

Multiple current and former Trump White House officials have used private email accounts and texts from personal phones for private conversations, sometimes using encrypted messaging apps. That’s despite clear directives not to use personal devices for administration business and to save the records if they do.