- The AFL-CIO accuses the US Treasury of improperly sharing data with DOGE.
- Senators propose new measures to secure government payment systems.
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the biggest federation of U.S. union groups, has sued the U.S. Treasury for allegedly engaging in the illegal release of extremely sensitive personal information to Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, also known as DOGE. The plaintiffs filed the suit on February 3 in a Washington, D.C. federal court. They accuse the Treasury of violating federal statutes by unauthorizedly releasing millions of people’s personal information, including Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, and other personal details.
The Treasury is alleged to have acted lawlessly, in a systemic and permanent nature that involved countless people. The data reportedly include names, dates of birth, addresses, telephone numbers, and email details. This kind of practice regarding Americans’ financial privacy raises massive concerns over the safety of their personal information.
US Treasury Sued for Unlawful DOGE Data Sharing
The Privacy Act restricts the government from disclosing personal records without a legal exception. The complaint is that DOGE had access to the same data, guided by the departmental head in charge of Musk, with no legitimate statutory reason for this access. The treasury’s complaint allegedly undermines citizens’ right to privacy protection. It allows continued access to personal data.
Several senators like Ron Wyden, Chuck Schumer, and Elizabeth Warren expressed very serious concerns with the matter at hand. Wyden recently sounded an alarm after a post on Bluesky claimed that DOGE had complete access to the Treasury’s payment systems. According to him, this might cause improper withholding of payments. Schumer and Warren also expressed their worries, with Schumer planning to introduce legislation that will curb such practices.
Although neither the Treasury nor DOGE has responded, the controversy calls attention to vulnerabilities in critical payment systems for governments. The present legal battle can have a ripple effect on the future handling of sensitive government data.
