Social Security Administration whistleblower Chuck Borges on PBS NewsHour
An attorney for whistleblower Chuck Borges says that DOGE accessing Americans’ sensitive Social Security information is like “the fox guarding the henhouse” — as her client appeared on PBS NewsHour responding to the latest news about data mishandling at the Social Security Administration (SSA). The attorney goes on to say that the “government is lying to us” about DOGE’s malfeasance.
Borges, who was the Social Security Administration’s chief data officer until being forced to resign, told NewsHour that a court filing from the Trump administration confirms some of his worst fears about DOGE’s abuse of beneficiaries’ personal data. The interview comes on the heels of reporting last week that DOGE employees shared sensitive Social Security data with a third party to ‘overturn election results.’
Borges filed a formal complaint about DOGE activities last summer, before being pushed out of SSA. His reporting flagged three specific concerns, which have now been partially validated by the recent court disclosure from the Trump administration’s very own Department of Justice (DOJ):
*DOGE employees were granted inappropriate access to SSA data.
*DOGE employees violated a temporary restraining order after sharing this data through “Voter Data Agreement” with an unnamed conservative advocacy group.
*DOGE employees uploaded sensitive Social Security data to an internet cloud server without adequate security controls.
Borges told PBS, “This court filing validates the first two pieces of that puzzle. The third piece has not yet been validated or refuted yet with any documentation. But if the first two allegations are correct, I’m very concerned about the third.”
This third issue involves a database called “The Numident,” the master log of all personal information connected to Social Security numbers dating back to 1936.
“To put that personally identifiable information (in the cloud) that can be used to propagate identity theft, mortgage fraud, steal small business loans, impersonate dead people… It’s a risk to literally every American’s ability to have a daily life” – Chuck Borges, Former Chief Data Officer, SSA
The Trump administration’s court filing downplays the breach as affecting only 1,000 people, but Borges questions that figure. “Americans can’t be sure (their data is safe) until the agency releases documentation that proves or refutes my allegations one way or the other. To date, they have released zero.”
“Because the government’s not telling us the truth. I still don’t think we know the full story. The allegations that Mr. Borges raised are quite serious. And he raised them with the federal agency that is responsible, Office of Special Counsel, for investigating his disclosures. And rather than investigating it, they have kicked it to a different agency. They haven’t investigated at all.” – Debra Katz, attorney for whistleblower Charles Borges
These brazen violations of privacy have become par for the course in Trump 2.0. As Politico recently reported, ChatGPT-style AI experiments have already exposed sensitive data at other agencies, akin to what DOGE is accused of doing at SSA.
“The government is lying to us,” Says Borges’ attorney, Debra Katz
From brutal workforce cuts to unnecessary hurdles for beneficiaries, Trump and Musk’s DOGE team unleashed trauma and chaos at the Social Security Administration shortly after the president took office. Even as Musk left the federal government and his relationship with Trump has waivered, the damage done to Social Security is coming into sharper focus.
The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare has joined Democratic members of Congress in calling for a probe into DOGE malfeasance:
“We stand with Congressmen John Larson (D-CT) and Richard Neal (D-MA) in demanding ‘a full criminal investigation into DOGE leaks of private Social Security data to Elon Musk’s associates and immediate congressional action to safeguard Americans’ privacy,’” said Max Richtman, President & CEO, National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare.
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Listen to our podcast interview with SSA whistleblower Laura Haltzel.
Find the full interview of Chuck Borges on the PBS NewsHour here.