AFSCME, Alliance for Retired Americans, AFT Challenge DOGE’s Illegal Access to Confidential, Private Data of Hundreds of Millions of Americans
Baltimore, MD — Yesterday, a coalition of unions and retirees filed a motion for emergency relief to halt Elon Musk’s so-called “Department of Government Efficiency’s” (DOGE) unprecedented, unlawful seizure of personal, confidential, private, and sensitive data regarding millions of Americans across the country from the Social
Security Administration (SSA), in violation of the law. Today’s action builds upon a suit filed by Democracy Forward last month.
Democracy Forward filed an amended complaint and motion for emergency relief on behalf of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Alliance for Retired Americans, and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT).
Those filings reflect new facts showing DOGE’s ongoing campaign at SSA, including statements from the current Acting Commissioner, who was previously suspended from his role at the agency, that “outsiders who are unfamiliar with nuances of SSA programs,” are calling the shots. The filings underscore those threats: personnel from DOGE have accessed sensitive information and improper disclosure violates privacy and increases the risk of access by external actors, doxxing, identity theft, and financial crimes, among other risks.
Tiffany Flick, who most recently served as Acting Chief of Staff to the former Acting SSA Commissioner before retiring last month, submitted a declaration in support of this lawsuit that outlines the significant steps taken by SSA career civil servants to protect
sensitive data as members of DOGE descended on the agency. In it, she writes: “A disregard for our careful privacy systems and processes now threatens the security of the data SSA houses about millions of Americans.”
“Working people spent their lives paying into Social Security,” said AFSCME President Lee Saunders. “They deserve to know their benefits and personal information are in safe hands. We will not stand by as an unaccountable, unelected billionaire undermines
the promise that they can one day retire with dignity. We look forward to moving this case forward in court and stopping these reckless efforts to invade the Social Security Administration.”
“Time is of the essence. Every day that the DOGE team is allowed to root around in our personal and financial data the higher the risk of it getting into the wrong hands or the integrity of the data being compromised,” said Richard Fiesta, executive director of
the Alliance for Retired Americans, a national grassroots advocacy organization. “We are asking the court to halt the DOGE team’s activities so the serious privacy issues and their potential consequences are fully addressed in a court of law before it’s too late.”
“With every passing day Americans’ personal and financial data is further jeopardized by Elon Musk’s actions,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. “Absent immediate relief, working families are at risk of having their private information stolen and exploited, all because an unelected billionaire has decided to raid this sensitive data for his own ends. The promise of Social Security is that if you work hard and play by the rules, you can retire with dignity and grace. Elon Musk is breaking that basic bond of trust and must be stopped immediately before he lays waste to the savings working
people have spent their lives building up.”
“Americans should be able to trust the government to protect their confidential data and yet – again – the Trump administration has shown a blatant disregard for the law and its obligations to the American people by granting unprecedented levels of access to
unappointed and unvetted individuals,” said Democracy Forward President & CEO Skye Perryman. “On behalf of retirees and worker representatives, we urge the court to block the Trump administration’s unlawful attempt to access the private data of
hundreds of millions of Americans across the country.”
The SSA maintains the financial data, employment information, medical data, and personal addresses of millions of Americans. The lawsuit alleges that such seizure by DOGE is prohibited by and in violation of the many protections Congress and the Executive Branch have in place to protect against such data mining and misuse. These include the Internal Revenue Code, the Privacy Act, the Social Security Act, the Federal Information Systems Modernization Act, and the Administrative Procedure Act.
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