A new investigation has revealed that Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, has placed at least ten operatives inside the Social Security Administration, a move that experts warn could disrupt benefits, compromise sensitive data, and set the stage for privatizing the agency.
Despite Musk’s public claims of “maximum transparency,” his department has attempted to keep the identities of its operatives secret. In some cases, officials have even argued that it is illegal to disclose who is working at DOGE. However, a report from Wired has identified ten DOGE staffers working within the SSA, many of whom have prior ties to Musk’s companies Tesla and SpaceX.
The staffing changes come at a time when the SSA is already facing deep budget cuts and layoffs, sparking concerns that the agency’s infrastructure is being deliberately weakened from within.
Wired’s investigation named ten DOGE operatives working inside the SSA: Akash Bobba, Scott Coulter, Marko Elez, Luke Farritor, Antonio Gracias, Gautier Cole Killian, Jon Koval, Nikhil Rajpal, Payton Rehling, and Ethan Shaotran.
“This team appears to be among the largest DOGE units deployed to any government agency,” Wired reported. “Many of them have worked or interned at Musk companies such as Tesla and SpaceX, and the majority of them have also appeared at other government agencies in recent weeks, as part of DOGE’s incursion into the government.”
Concerns have been raised about whether these operatives have the expertise to oversee SSA’s complex systems. According to Wired, “three of the DOGE staffers—Gracias, Koval, and Rehling—don’t seem to have any prior government experience.”
Gracias has extensive ties to Musk, having worked at Tesla for 14 years as a company director and playing a key role in taking the company public. His presence inside SSA has fueled speculation that Musk’s endgame is to push for the privatization of Social Security.
Bloomberg has reported that seven of the DOGE-affiliated staffers have been granted access to critical SSA records, including the Master File of Social Security Number Holders and SSN Applications, also known as Numident.
“They currently have read-only access as they try to connect the dots between Social Security numbers and possible fraudulent benefits,” Bloomberg reported.
Other government documents confirm that DOGE operatives have access to:
• The Master Beneficiary Record, which contains detailed information on Social Security recipients and their benefits.
• Treasury Payment Files from the Social Security Online Accounting and Reporting System, which track government payments.
The access granted to DOGE operatives has raised alarm among privacy advocates, as the SSA stores some of the most sensitive personal and financial data of American citizens. Experts warn that inexperienced DOGE personnel could inadvertently expose or mishandle this data.
Musk’s takeover of the SSA comes as he and President Donald Trump have publicly spread false claims about Social Security fraud.
In recent weeks, Musk and Trump have both claimed—without evidence—that millions of dead people are receiving Social Security benefits. Musk has called the Social Security system a “Ponzi scheme” and has falsely claimed that “millions of 150-year-olds” are fraudulently collecting benefits.
“One of the tasks the DOGE cohort will be assigned is how people identify themselves to access their benefit payments,” Wired reported. Experts have expressed concern that Musk’s focus on identity verification could be used as a pretext to restrict benefits or push a privatization agenda.
Leland Dudek, whom Trump installed as acting SSA commissioner last month, has reportedly admitted to staff that Musk’s lieutenants are now effectively running the department.
“Are we going to break something? I don’t know,” Dudek said during a closed-door meeting with SSA staffers, according to Wired.
Concerns about the consequences of DOGE’s control over SSA systems have only grown in the wake of recent agency shake-ups. Former SSA Commissioner Martin O’Malley warned last week that the system could “collapse” in months, leading to interruptions in benefit payments for millions of Americans.
In response to these revelations, Senate Democrats are demanding an investigation into Musk’s activities at the SSA.
Senator Ron Wyden, along with other Democratic lawmakers, sent a letter to the Republican chair of the Senate Finance Committee warning that DOGE’s “unfettered access” to SSA data poses “a profound risk of causing irreparable harm to the agency’s systems and Americans’ financial security.”
Additionally, labor unions representing SSA employees have filed lawsuits seeking to block DOGE’s access to the agency’s data, arguing that its actions violate privacy laws. The lawsuits have revealed that six of the DOGE staffers at SSA still have pending background checks, yet were granted access to sensitive databases.
DOGE operatives are not only inside the SSA but have also been placed in multiple federal agencies, including the General Services Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Michael Russo, a former executive from the private payments industry with no prior government experience, was recently appointed as the SSA’s new chief information officer. He has reportedly pushed for broader access to SSA systems, raising further concerns about the security of Americans’ data.`
As DOGE operatives consolidate their power at SSA, the agency is already experiencing significant disruptions.
• Mass layoffs: The SSA has announced plans to fire 7,000 employees and close more than half of its regional offices.
• Severe budget restrictions: SSA staff say they are now forced to ration basic office supplies, including paper for benefit verification letters.
• Service disruptions: The provision of sign language interpreters for SSA clients has been halted due to budget constraints.
• Security risks: SSA offices have been unable to pay document shredding services, raising concerns that personal data could be left exposed.
A former SSA employee, John McGing, warned in an interview with Wired that DOGE’s interference poses a serious threat to the agency’s operations.
“It’s a valid fear that personally identifiable information will be exfiltrated or source code messed with without necessary controls and rigor,” McGing said.
With lawsuits pending and Senate Democrats calling for investigations, the battle over DOGE’s influence at the SSA is far from over.
If legal challenges succeed, DOGE operatives could be removed from SSA and blocked from accessing its sensitive records. If Musk and Trump’s allies prevail, the restructuring of SSA could accelerate, leading to widespread layoffs, service reductions, and the potential privatization of key Social Security functions.
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