Reporting rate rises to 33% among troops who experienced sexual contact
The findings are based on confidential surveys taken every two years and on sexual assault reports made to authorities, which the Pentagon uses together to track the scope of unwanted sexual contact across the armed forces.
The department’s report found that the overall prevalence of unwanted sexual contact among active-duty service members declined in fiscal 2025 even as reporting rose.
“In other words, about 1 in 3 Service members reported experiencing their sexual assault to a Department authority,” the report said of the estimated 33% of affected service members who came forward in fiscal 2025. “This estimate is up from the 1 in 4 Service members estimated to have reported experiencing sexual assault in FY 2023.”
The Pentagon characterized the latest figures as another year of improving trends in addressing sexual assault in the military. The pattern reversed what the department described as nearly a decade of rising numbers of reported assaults leading up to the recent period of declines.
The department’s reports from the previous two years also showed declines in both the number of reports filed and the share of service members who said they had experienced unwanted sexual contact.
Even with the recent improvements, AP’s coverage of the report observed that many say the numbers remain too high.
The findings were reported by Ben Finley of The Associated Press.