A federal judge on Monday blocked Elon Musk and his “DOGE” goons from getting access to private data collected by the Education Department and the Office of Personnel Management.
U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman issued a temporary restraining order in response to a lawsuit led by the American Federation of Teachers, halting DOGE’s access to personal information on millions of Americans. The ruling stops the Education Department and OPM from sharing personally identifiable data with DOGE affiliates until at least March 10.
WHY IT MATTERS: The ruling delivers another blow to Musk’s efforts to access Americans’ private data for who knows what purposes.
THE BACKGROUND: The American Federation of Teachers, along with other unions and individuals, sued to block DOGE’s access to federal databases containing sensitive personal information, including Social Security numbers and home addresses.
- The lawsuit alleges that the Trump administration violated the Privacy Act by improperly granting Musk’s team access to these records.
- DOGE has reportedly been feeding this data into AI systems as part of Trump’s broader push to shrink the Education Department and gut financial aid programs.
BIG PICTURE: The ruling follows a previous court decision denying DOGE access to Treasury Department data.
- DOGE has been pulling data from key financial aid databases, including the National Student Loan Data System.
- Musk’s team claims data collection is part of a broader effort to reform and cut government spending, but critics see it as a blatant overreach aimed at dismantling federal programs.
WHAT’S NEXT: The restraining order remains in place until at least March 10, when the court will decide on a longer-term solution. Meanwhile, legal challenges against Musk’s and Trump’s efforts to strip federal agencies of their autonomy continue to mount.