The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to allow Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to access sensitive Social Security data. The emergency request follows a Maryland judge’s ruling that blocked full access under federal privacy laws.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) holds critical records on nearly every American, including school transcripts, bank details, salary history, and medical records tied to disability benefits. DOGE, created under President Donald Trump and heavily influenced by Musk, claims the data is needed to target fraud and waste across federal programs.
Federal judge limited DOGE access
Earlier this year, U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander in Baltimore issued a preliminary injunction limiting DOGE’s access to anonymized records only. Hollander described DOGE’s actions as a “fishing expedition” based on minimal evidence of actual fraud within Social Security.
The Trump administration’s Solicitor General, John Sauer, argued in Friday’s filing that restricting DOGE hampers executive authority and disrupts efforts to cut government spending. “Left undisturbed, this preliminary injunction will only invite further judicial incursions into internal agency decision-making,” Sauer wrote.
An appeals court had already declined to lift the block, with conservative justices dissenting, noting there was no direct evidence that DOGE mishandled or improperly accessed private information.
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Privacy advocates raise alarms
Privacy experts warn that allowing DOGE full access to Social Security data could have lasting consequences.
Elizabeth Laird, senior director at the Center for Democracy and Technology tells the AP “If DOGE gets a hold of this information, it opens the floodgates on a host of potential harms. It also normalizes a very dangerous practice for other federal agencies.”
The Supreme Court has asked unions and retirees, represented by Democracy Forward, to file their response by May 12. The legal fight comes amid broader challenges to Trump’s government restructuring agenda, with more than 200 lawsuits filed so far.
DOGE’s broader work across federal agencies has sparked controversy, including mass layoffs and agency restructuring initiatives that critics say target worker protections and privacy rights.
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