Judge in DOGE Social Security Case Ponders Longer Injunction

A bid to prevent Elon Musk’s government efficiency team from getting wholesale access to sensitive Social Security administration data may struggle before the Fourth Circuit, a federal judge indicated during a Tuesday hearing.

The case in the US District Court for the District of Maryland is one of several attempting to prevent the Department of Government Efficiency from reviewing government data in violation of the Privacy Act and due to data security concerns.

Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander asked the parties whether the case could be distinguished from a Fourth Circuit decision that “abstract access to personal information” isn’t a concrete ...