A US federal judge on 20 March blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by Ilon Musk, from accessing Social Security Administration (SSA) data.
US District Court Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander of Maryland said in her ruling that the Social Security Administration likely violated privacy laws by giving DOGE “unrestricted access to the personal and private data of millions of Americans”.
“The DOGE team is essentially fishing the SSA for an epidemic of fraud based on suspicion alone. It has begun searching for the proverbial needle in a haystack without any concrete evidence that the needle is actually in the haystack,” Hollander said.
The White House has yet to comment on the court’s decision.
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) sought access to US Social Security Administration (SSA) data to uncover possible fraud and inefficiencies in the Social Security system. Musk argued that millions of people may be receiving Social Security benefits illegally.
However, critics point out that such actions could violate privacy laws and put the personal information of millions of Americans at risk. They also point out that DOGE’s access to sensitive information could be used for other purposes unrelated to the claimed fight against fraud.
Earlier, US resident Donald Trump pledged to cut government spending and directed DOGE to realise this goal.