A federal judge has temporarily blocked Elon Musk’s so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge) from accessing the sensitive personal information of millions of Americans, dealing a quick blow to the second Trump administration’s controversial government downsizing goals.
According to court filings on Monday, US district judge Deborah Boardman ruled that the Department of Education and office of personnel management – the government’s HR department – must stop sharing federal employees’ and student borrowers’ personal data with Doge officials, stating that such access appears to violate federal privacy laws.
“This continuing, unauthorized disclosure of the plaintiffs’ sensitive personal information to Doge affiliates is irreparable harm that money damages cannot rectify,” said a 33-page ruling from Boardman, who was appointed to the federal judiciary by Joe Biden’s presidential administration.
The two-week restraining order came in response to a lawsuit brought by federal employee unions, student loan recipients and veterans. While technically applying only to the plaintiffs, the ruling in effect creates a broad ban on Doge’s access to personal data, including social security numbers, tax information and other sensitive records.
At the heart of the ruling is the determination that the government failed to demonstrate why Doge staffers needed access to this information. The court focused on the legal requirement that officials must have a “need-to-know” basis for accessing sensitive records – a standard Boardman ruled the government had not met.
The decision represents the most wide-ranging judicial check yet on Doge’s activities since its creation through a January executive order. And it follows another court order from New York that has already blocked Doge personnel from accessing treasury department payment databases.
The ruling hampers the job-cutting initiatives Trump has entrusted to Musk, including the billionaire businessman’s weekend message to federal workers demanding they detail their previous week’s work or be deemed to have resigned. The maneuver sparked mass controversy across Washington.
