The Pentagon says reports of military sexual assaults jumped by 13% last year, but an anonymous survey of service members suggests the problem is vastly larger.
The survey results found that more than 20,000 service members said they experienced some type of unwanted sexual contact, and only about a third of those filed a formal sexual assault report.
The survey covers 2018 and was released Thursday.
The survey total is about 37% higher than two years ago, when one was last done. And it comes on the heels of a year dominated by the #MeToo movement and the ongoing integration of women into ground combat units.
The survey found that women between 17 and 20 were most likely to experience sexual assault, and most knew their attacker.
