WASHINGTON, Aug 27: The personal data of more than 300 million Americans was put at risk after officials from the Department of Government Efficiency uploaded Social Security information into a cloud platform that was not under government oversight, the AP reported, citing a whistleblower complaint submitted Tuesday to the special counsel’s office.
The whistleblower, Charles Borges, who has served as the Social Security Administration’s chief data officer since January, warned that sensitive details could be exposed. The AP stated that this data included medical diagnoses, banking records, income information, family connections, and other personal identifiers.
According to the AP, the complaint warned that “bad actors” gaining access could lead to massive identity theft, disruption of healthcare and food benefits, and potentially force the government to issue every American a new Social Security number, which would come at significant expense.
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The AP reported that the Government Accountability Project filed the complaint on Borges’ behalf, addressing it to oversight committees in both the House and Senate, with a request for lawmakers to take “appropriate oversight action.”
The AP said this disclosure follows a series of complaints directed at President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, which was granted sweeping access to government-held personal data under its directive to reduce fraud, waste, and abuse. Earlier this year, labor and retiree organizations sued the Social Security Administration for allowing DOGE to review sensitive records, though the AP reported that a divided appeals panel recently ruled the agency could permit the access.
Responding to the allegations, the SSA issued a statement saying it treats whistleblower concerns seriously but dismissed Borges’ claims as exaggerated. The AP quoted the agency as saying, “SSA stores all personal data in secure environments that have robust safeguards in place to protect vital information. The data referenced in the complaint is stored in a long-standing environment used by SSA and walled off from the internet. High-level career SSA officials have administrative access to this system with oversight by SSA’s Information Security team. We are not aware of any compromise to this environment and remain dedicated to protecting sensitive personal data.”
The AP reported that Borges informed his superiors he viewed the upload as both an abuse of authority and a significant public safety risk that may also break federal law.
Andrea Meza, Borges’ attorney, told the AP her client acted “out of a sense of urgency and duty to the American public.”
