Elon Musk’s DOGE temporarily blocked from its ‘nearly unlimited’ access to millions of American’s Social Security information—for now
WASHINGTON (AP) – A federal judge temporarily prevented billionaire billionaire to manage government efficiency from social security systems that carry personal data on millions of Americans, describing their work as a “hunting trip.”
It also requires the team to delete any personal data that can be determined in its possession.
American boycott judge Eileen Hollande in Maryland found that the team got sensitive information in the Social Security Administration to search for fraud without little justification.
She wrote: “The Doug team is mainly participated in a fish hunting trip in SSA, in search of a fraud epidemic, based on more than just doubt,” she wrote.
The request allows DOGE employees to access the revised or stripped data from anything that can be recognized personally, if they undergo training and background checks.
“It is certain that the removal of fraud, waste and mismanagement in SSA is in general interest. This does not mean that the government can float the to do so.”
The Trump administration says Dog is targeting waste in the federal government. Musk focused on social security as an alleged hotbed of fraud, describing it as the “Ponzi scheme” and insists that reducing waste in the program is an important way to reduce government spending.
The ruling, which can be challenged upon appeal, comes in a lawsuit filed by trade unions, retirees and attackers in the Da`wah group. They argued that Doug has violated the laws of privacy and represents serious risks to information security. The lawsuit included an announcement from a social security official who recently left that the Doug team was sweeping at the agency said it was very worried about the exposure of sensitive information.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Dogs detailed a team of 10 federal employees in SSA, seven of them were granted to read only to the agency or personal information, according to court documents.
The government argued that all employees are allowed by federal employees to access data under federal privacy laws, and there is no evidence that any personal data sharing is incorrectly.
The Ministry of Justice also said that Dog’s arrival does not deviate from regular practices within the agency, as employees are routinely allowed to discuss their databases. But prosecutors’ lawyers called unprecedented access.
Lee Sonders, President of the American Federation of State employees, boycott and municipality, has described the referee as “a great victory for workers and retirees throughout the country.”
“The court recognized the real and immediate dangers of the reckless Duji measures and took measures to stop it,” said Sky Periman, head of the Democratic striker.
Dog has some access to other government databases, including in the Treasury and the Tax Authority.
In SSA, DOGE employees invaded the agency’s days after Trump’s inauguration and pressed the software engineer to quickly reach data systems that are usually carefully restricted even within the government, a former court official said.
The team seemed to be looking for fraud based on inaccuracy and misunderstanding, according to Tifani Felk, the Acting Chief of Staff to the Commissioner for Acting.
Holland, 75, is based in Baltimore and was nominated by President Barack Obama, is the latest judge who thinks about a related case.
The team drew nearly twenty cases. Earlier this week, another judge in Maryland found that Doug’s dismantling of the United States Development Agency is likely to be unconstitutional.
While other judges raised questions about the comprehensive DOGE efforts to reduce costs, they did not always agree on any imminent risks enough to prevent the team from government regimes.
This story was originally shown on Fortune.com
2025-03-20 21:33:00
