Head of Social Security admits he doesn't know what 'DOGE kids' have been doing with Americans' data [View all]

Source: The Independent

Wednesday 12 March 2025 15:04 EDT


The acting head of the Social Security Administration admitted that he doesn’t know exactly what the “DOGE kids” have been doing with Americans’ sensitive data, according to a bombshell audio recording.

An hour-long meeting last week led by the department’s acting commissioner, Leland Dudek, was captured on an audio recording shared with ProPublica, where he repeatedly referred to young staffers at the Department of Government Efficiency as the “DOGE kids,” and confirmed they had “broad access” to Social Security numbers and personal data.

Addressing what DOGE staffers had been doing with Social Security data, Dudek reportedly asked at one point in the meeting: “Are we going to break something? I don’t know.” But he added that he “actually like[s] having the kids around” despite them being unfamiliar with the “nuances” of the department. “They’re learning. Let people learn. They’re going to make mistakes,” Dudek reportedly said. “They’re thinking about work differently.”

One of his deputies in the meeting added it was a “victory” that there was not more misinformation because the DOGE staffers “are being educated.” In a bid to reassure employees, Dudek reportedly said that if Elon Musk’s techies did anything illegal with Americans’ Social Security numbers or data, he would investigate and have them “potentially prosecuted.”

Read more: https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/doge-social-security-cuts-leland-dudek-b2713897.html