The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by Elon Musk is facing a setback in its offensive on the Social Security Administration (SSA): a district judge has temporarily blocked the agency from accessing systems that hold personal data on millions of people.
Concretely, U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander ruled that the team also has to delete any personally identifiable data they may have already got. Hollander, who is based in Maryland, upheld a request made by labor unions and retirees, who claimed DOGE's "nearly unlimited" access to personal data violates privacy laws and poses a security risk.
The request came after the Trump administration said it had a 10-person team at the SSA. It added that most of them had been granted read-only access to systems as they seek to cut waste and fraud.
"The DOGE Team is essentially engaged in a fishing expedition at SSA, in search of a fraud epidemic, based on little more than suspicion," judge Hollander, appointed by former President Barack Obama, said in a passage of her ruling. She rejected arguments by government attorneys, who said access from DOGE members are not far off from normal practices inside the agency.
Elon Musk has hinted at cutting down the agency's funding based on a claim that 150-year-old— and even people who have lived more than three centuries— are somehow receiving tens of millions of dollars in taxpayer money.
The billionaire also said there were "20 million people who are definitely dead marked as alive in the Social Security database." However, the leader of the agency has rejected claims about widespread payments to dead people.
Musk's estimate for the level of fraud in entitlements far outpaces figures from watchdogs like Social Security's inspector general, who previously said there was $71.8 billion in improper payments from fiscal years 2015 through 2022. That's less than 1% of benefits paid out during that time period, according to The Associated Press.
Musk's comment contradicts top GOP leaders' vows to keep Social Security benefits for Americans. Trump has repeatedly promised not to touch Social Security benefits, while House Speaker Mike Johnson vowed last month that the GOP will not make cuts to Medicaid, Medicare or Social Security.
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