At a Glance
- DOJ court filing corrects earlier statements about the DOGE Team’s access to Social Security data.
- Corrections reveal at least one DOGE member searched personally identifiable information (PII) and shared data with a political group.
- The filing uncovers multiple unauthorized system accesses and a signed Voter Data Agreement.
- Why it matters: The revelations highlight gaps in federal data security and raise questions about the oversight of political advocacy activities.
The Department of Justice’s latest court filing uncovers a series of missteps by the Social Security Administration’s DOGE Team, a group tasked with improving government efficiency. The corrections-made almost a year after the initial allegations-show that the team had broader access to sensitive data than previously acknowledged and that some members engaged with a political advocacy group without proper authorization.
Background
The DOGE Team, short for Department of Government Efficiency, was established to streamline federal operations and improve data handling. In early 2025, the DOJ publicly denied that any DOGE members had accessed or shared private information from the Social Security Administration (SSA). Those statements were later challenged by a court filing that sought to correct the record.
Key Players
- Department of Justice (DOJ) – The federal agency that oversees the lawsuit and the court filings.
- Social Security Administration (SSA) – The agency whose data was allegedly accessed.
- DOGE Team – A subset of SSA employees tasked with improving government efficiency.
- Political Advocacy Group – An unnamed group that requested analysis of state voter rolls.
Court Filing Corrections
The filing, first spotted by Politico, contains a series of “corrections” and “clarifications” to earlier DOJ declarations. The corrections are organized around specific incidents and system accesses.
| Correction | Description | Date | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Temporary restraining order | DOJ’s March 20, 2025 declaration revoked all SSA DOGE Team members’ access to systems containing personally identifiable information. | March 20, 2025 | Clarifies that access was revoked, but a later incident contradicts this. |
| Unauthorized PII search | One unidentified DOGE member performed searches of PII on March 24, 2025. | March 24, 2025 | Shows that revocation was ineffective or incomplete. |
| Access to SSA systems of record | Earlier DOJ statement that DOGE defendants never had access to SSA systems of record was false. | – | Demonstrates prior denial was incorrect. |
| Email with Social Security data | An unnamed DOGE member emailed a file containing Social Security data to the Department of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security. The file, password-protected, is believed to contain personal information about 1,000 people. | – | Indicates data was shared outside authorized channels. |
| Call center data access | A DOGE member accessed call center information after the court order forbidding such access. | – | Violates the restraining order. |
| Cloudflare data sharing | DOGE members shared data with Cloudflare in an unapproved manner. | – | Exposes third-party data sharing concerns. |
| Employee records access | Multiple DOGE members were granted access to systems containing SSA employee records, personnel access information, shared workspace, and additional EDW schemas. | – | Shows extensive internal data exposure. |
Detailed Access Overview
The filing lists the following access granted to DOGE members:
- Three members accessed a system with SSA employee records for workforce initiatives.
- Two members accessed a system with personnel access data to prevent terminated employees from badge access or IT system entry.
- Six members accessed a shared workspace that could facilitate data sharing for fraud or analytics reviews.
- Two members accessed a data visualization tool that could connect to other data sources, potentially exposing PII.
- Two members accessed additional EDW schemas beyond those reported as of March 12, 2025.
These details illustrate a pattern of broad and often unapproved data access.
Political Group Involvement
In March 2025, a political advocacy group reached out to two DOGE Team members, requesting analysis of state voter rolls they had acquired. The group’s stated goal was to find evidence of voter fraud and to overturn election results in certain states.
One DOGE member signed a Voter Data Agreement with the advocacy group in his capacity as an SSA employee. The agreement was sent to the group on March 24, 2025. The existence of the agreement was only discovered while reviewing an unrelated case, and it was not reviewed or approved through the agency’s data-exchange procedures.
The SSA first learned of this agreement during a review unrelated to the case in November 2025. No evidence exists that SSA employees outside the involved DOGE members were aware of the communications or the agreement.
Consequences and Oversight
The two DOGE members involved in the Voter Data Agreement have been referred to a special counsel over potential violations of the Hatch Act. It remains unclear whether any penalties will be imposed for the broader mishandling of private information.
The DOJ’s court filing corrects earlier denials but also raises new questions about the effectiveness of federal data-security protocols and the oversight of political advocacy activities that rely on sensitive data.
Key Takeaways
- DOJ’s court filing reveals that the DOGE Team had broader access to SSA data than previously acknowledged.
- Unauthorized PII searches and data sharing with a political advocacy group were uncovered.
- Multiple system accesses, including employee records and call center data, violated restraining orders.
- A Voter Data Agreement was signed without proper approval and discovered only during an unrelated review.
- The case highlights gaps in federal data-security oversight and the need for stricter enforcement.
The revelations underscore the importance of robust internal controls and transparent oversight when federal agencies handle sensitive personal information.
