Trump official threatens to shut down Social Security if DOGE can’t access private data
The acting commissioner of the Social Security Administration says he wants to “turn off” the agency’s IT systems following a court ruling issued Thursday. According to Bloomberg, the warning came following a judge’s ruling that forbid the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing any non-anonymized data collected by the SSA.
Interim Social Security Commissioner Lee Dudek criticized the decision by U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander, saying the order is too broad as it applies to DOGE affiliates. Dudek said his agency could use DOGE affiliates in anti-fraud efforts and in IT systems.
“As it stands, I will follow it exactly and terminate access by all SSA employees to our IT systems,” Dudek said, before also adding “Really, I want to turn it off and let the courts figure out how they want to run a federal agency.”
It is unclear if the decision will impact the agency’s ability to issue Social Security benefits; approximately 72.5 million Americans receive monthly benefits from the SSA.
Dudek said building and laptop access for DOGE team members were revoked following the order. DOGE employees were also ordered to delete or purge any previously obtained SSA data.
The ruling does allow for DOGE team members to access redacted or anonymized information. Team members can also gain access to the full data if they receive the same standard training that federal employees who access Social Security data systems currently receive.
President Donald Trump created DOGE via an executive order signed in January. Billionaire Elon Musk has been tasked with running the agency and has already made major cuts to several government agencies. In an interview earlier this month, Musk called Social Security “the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time.”
Hollander’s ruling is the latest court decision that has restricted DOGE’s efforts to access the private data of Americans collected by various government agencies. DOGE has previously been denied access to data systems used by the Treasury, the Department of Education and more. However, ongoing lawsuits may overturn those rulings.