The Trump administration agreed Tuesday to temporarily bar agents of billionaire Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service from accessing sensitive student data at the Education Department.
The agreement will remain in place until at least Monday, when U.S. District Judge Randolph D. Moss is expected to decide whether to issue a temporary restraining order. In the meantime, Moss, in federal district court in the District of Columbia, said the department may not allow any U.S. DOGE Service staffers access to 13 databases, including the National Student Loan Data System.
The order arrives days after the National Student Legal Defense Network and Public Citizen filed a lawsuit on behalf of the University of California Student Association, accusing the department of illegally sharing confidential student data with DOGE, which stands for Department of Government Efficiency.
The consumer groups say the department is violating the 1974 Privacy Act, which prohibits the federal government from disclosing and misusing sensitive personal and financial information. The complaint also accuses the Education Department of violating confidentiality provisions of the Internal Revenue Code by giving Musk’s team access to records that contain tax information.
Dan Zibel, vice president at Student Defense, said that Tuesday’s agreement “puts further damage on hold” and that his team looks forward to “putting a permanent end” to the violations.
“Millions of students still are questioning whether their personal information is in unsafe hands, and we need answers from the Department of Education to fully account for any data that’s already been breached,” Zibel said.
[Federal judge blocks DOGE from accessing sensitive US Treasury Department material]
The Education Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday.
When the lawsuit was filed Friday, department spokesperson Madi Biedermann said DOGE team members are federal employees with required background checks and are working in collaboration with department staff. “There is nothing inappropriate or nefarious going on,” she said.
The department collects personal information to administer federal financial aid programs, including dates of birth, contact information, Social Security numbers and, in some instances, bank account information. DOGE has gained access to Education Department databases that contain such information - the National Student Loan Data System, FSA Partner Connect and Financial Management System, The Post previously reported.
FSA Partner Connect is a portal for colleges participating in the federal financial aid program to submit paperwork to the student aid office. The system contains information about academic programs, accreditation and student data, and it is typically used by colleges to refund money to students.
DOGE, according to previous Post reporting, has access to data from across the Education Department that is being fed into artificial-intelligence software to probe the agency’s programs and spending. The effort is part of a push to slash spending and shrink the agency’s staff, as President Donald Trump seeks to get rid of the department.
On Monday, a coalition of labor unions, including the American Federation of Teachers, also filed a lawsuit challenging DOGE’s access to sensitive data at the Education Department, as well as data at the Office of Personnel Management and the Treasury Department. The group claims that the agencies are improperly disclosing the records of millions of Americans to DOGE staff in violation of the Privacy Act.
Lawmakers are also taking issue with DOGE. A group of Senate Democrats, led by Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts) and Charles E. Schumer (New York), launched an inquiry Thursday demanding that the department explain the rationale for granting DOGE access to sensitive student data.