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A federal judge in New York temporarily blocked Elon Musk and his team from accessing U.S. Treasury payment data, warning that its risks lead to disclosure of sensitive information.
The order issued Saturday morning was a new legal blow to billionaire technology, and his closest allies’ efforts to comb through federal payments to cut costs for the U.S. government.
The court’s move is to deal with legal challenges from prosecutors in 19 democracies, who argued that Musk’s unofficial “Department of Government Efficiency” division was an American established by President Donald Trump.
The “new policy” has a risk of “disclosure of sensitive and confidential information” and “increased risks that the systems involved will be more than before,” wrote Paul Engelmayer, a judge for the southern New York region, in court order. More vulnerable hackers.”
He ordered any “political appointments, special government employees and any government employees” outside the U.S. Treasury Department to limit access to the agency’s data and should destroy any information obtained since Trump’s inauguration last month.
The order is expected to remain in place at least at a court hearing on February 14.
The judge’s order highlights how Trump and Musk face the biggest obstacles in court in the widespread drive to selectively cut government spending, as it tests the limitations of executive power and the U.S. privacy laws.
Earlier this week, a federal judge in the District of Columbia ruled that outsiders should not be granted access to the Treasury Department’s payment data to address another legal challenge posed by representatives of retirees and government employees.
The White House is trying to calm down Musk, who is being designated as a “special government employee”, is conducting rogue operations. But Democrats are increasingly raising alarm bells for the activities of the “door guard”.
Ron Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee.
The Ministry of Finance did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
