WASHINGTON — Two United States admirals, including the Navy’s chief intelligence officer, were stripped of their access to classified information on Friday after being implicated in a contracting scandal that federal prosecutors are investigating in San Diego.

The accusations against the two officers — Vice Adm. Ted Branch, the director of naval intelligence, and Rear Adm. Bruce Loveless, the director of intelligence operations — signal a significant escalation in the investigation and show its widening impact on the Navy.

Admirals Branch and Loveless have been accused of “inappropriate conduct” in connection with the scandal, Rear Adm. John F. Kirby, the Navy’s chief of information, said in a statement Friday night. Investigators had so far named only midlevel Navy officers accused of accepting visits from prostitutes and lavish trips — and in one instance $100,000 in cash — from Leonard Francis, a Malaysian contractor.

Navy officials said the allegations against Admirals Branch and Loveless involved personal misconduct in accepting gifts or services from Mr. Francis, the nature of which could have exposed them to blackmail. But, the officials said, there was no sign at this point that the admirals had done anything for Mr. Francis that might lead to bribery charges against them.