The U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) is facing a major scandal related to the security of millions of Americans’ personal data. A top official filed a whistleblower against an external group known as DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) because they duplicated one of the most sensitive databases in the country in an unauthorized cloud environment with no accurate security controls.
We should always be informed about what’s going on with the government, so let’s find out more about this scandal that could affect you and your surroundings.
What’s DOGE?
DOGE was created under an executive order from President Donald Trump in 2025 with the aim of reducing expenses and modernizing the government. Unlike traditional government agencies, DOGE was never approved by Congress and operated outside many normal checks and balances. For a while, Elon Musk was involved in DOGE which generated even more curiosity from the public.
The thing with DOGE is that it worked very differently from official agencies: without respecting security protocols nor legal supervision. In the case of Social Security, this ended up being a serious conflict.
NUMIDENT database: the heart of Social Security
Charles Borges, Chief Data Officer of the Social Security Administration, was the whistleblower and he has more than 30 years of experience in the IT systems of the government. Borges stated that DOGE copied the NUMIDENT database, which contains information of every person who has applied for a U.S. Social Security number. So, you can imagine how many people’s data that is…
In this database you can find: complete names, addresses, birth dates, place of birth, and more. Basically, this is the key to identity theft.
According to Borges, in June of this year, DOGE moved a copy of the NUMIDENT to a cloud environment that wasn’t under the SSA control, had no independent security audits, and was accessible only by two DOGE staffers. Not even the SSA’s own infrastructure administrators could control the system.
How serious is this?
According to Borges, the risk is huge if that copy in the cloud falls into the wrong hands:
- Widespread identity theft affecting nearly every American.
- Loss of Social Security benefits such as healthcare and food assistance.
- Massive administrative chaos, including the possibility of reissuing every American a new Social Security number.
Legal battles over access to Social Security systems
This conflict didn’t really start in June because in March a judge banned DOGE from having access to Social Security systems. However, according to the complaint, in less than 24 hours they could recover this access thanks to internal officials who were told to override the restrictions. Then, in June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in DOGE’s favor, officially allowing the group to regain access.
SSA’s response and the whistleblower resignation
The SSA publicly stated that all the data is kept in a safe and isolated environment of the internet, and that they don’t have evidence of being hacked. Yet, they don’t make clear how they manage the copy in the cloud created by DOGE.
The most controversial of all? After filing the complaint, Borges says he was forced to resign. Reports indicate that his farewell email to colleagues was mysteriously deleted from inboxes, raising suspicions of retaliation inside the agency.
Now what?
The complaint has been filed with the Office Special Counsel (OSC), which has 45 days to decide how to proceed. Unfortunately, the OSC can only determine whether the claims are likely valid—it then hands the matter back to the SSA to investigate itself. In other words, the same agency accused of failing to protect Social Security data will be responsible for judging its own conduct.
In the meantime, millions of American people depend on Social Security to guarantee them protection for their data. But the question now is: can Social Security guarantee this?