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Musk’s DOGE Seeks Access to US Tax System

Published

1 month ago

Feb 17, 2025.

Musk’s DOGE seeks access to the IRS’s sensitive taxpayer data.
Privacy experts warn that granting access could lead to identity theft risks.
White House defends the move as necessary to uncover government waste.

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has raised alarms by seeking access to sensitive taxpayer data from the U.S. tax system, according to reports from U.S. media outlets.

The request, which aims to grant DOGE officials access to the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Integrated Data Retrieval System (IDRS), has sparked concerns over privacy and security.

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The IDRS, typically accessible only to IRS personnel, provides detailed financial data on millions of American taxpayers. DOGE, led by Musk, has been tasked with identifying wasteful government spending, and this move is part of President Donald Trump’s broader campaign to cut public spending deemed inefficient or contrary to his policies.

Reports from the Washington Post and others revealed that DOGE officials are seeking broad access to the IRS’s property, systems, and datasets.

As of Sunday, the request had not been granted, but it has already raised significant concerns within the government and among privacy advocates. Critics warn that allowing DOGE to access such private data could pose serious risks, including identity theft and privacy invasions.

Elizabeth Laird, a former state privacy officer, expressed concerns about the potential for misuse, stating that citizens expect their sensitive information to be handled securely by the government.

White House spokesperson Harrison Fields defended the move, arguing that access to the IRS system is essential to identify and eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse.