Judge determined OPM broke law with DOGE access to data

A federal judge granted an injunction blocking the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing databases at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

The decision from U.S. District Judge Denise Cote, an appointee of former President Clinton, found DOGE was unlawfully given access to sweeping databases that cover current and former federal employees and also contain information on prospective hires.

“Following President Trump’s inauguration, OPM granted broad access to many of those systems to a group of individuals associated with the Department of Government Efficiency (‘DOGE’), even though no credible need for this access had been demonstrated. In doing so, OPM violated the law and bypassed its established cybersecurity practices,” Cote wrote.

DOGE was given access to OPM data in the earliest days of the administration as the Trump team looked for ways to contact every federal employee — a task that was otherwise handled through each individual department or agency.

That access was a steppingstone to later emailing employees to offer a government buyout and later to demand employees send weekly emails listing five accomplishments achieved.

Cote determined that OPM violated the privacy act by giving DOGE access to the files and never showed a clear need to access the data.

“The plaintiffs have pointed to clear evidence that the DOGE agents did not need access to the records disclosed to them, much less the administrative access that they were given,” she wrote, noting that once DOGE was given access to the system, “database administrators who were responsible for the normal functioning of those systems had their access revoked.”

Cote also said DOGE’s access violated the Administrative Procedures Act prohibition on arbitrary and capricious government actions.

While Cote’s decision enjoins DOGE access to the OPM system, the parties will meet Thursday to hammer out the details of the injunction.