A federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction blocking Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) from accessing the personal financial data of millions of Americans held in Treasury Department records. The ruling, handed down by U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer on Saturday, mandates Musk and his team to immediately destroy any copies of the records they have obtained.
The legal battle emerged after 19 Democratic state attorneys general filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, arguing that granting access to Musk a “special government employee” and Doge, which lacks formal government department status, violated federal law. The lawsuit named former President Donald Trump, the Treasury Department, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as defendants.
Engelmayer’s order underscored the immediate and irreversible harm the policy posed. “That is both because of the risk that the new policy presents of the disclosure of sensitive and confidential information and the heightened risk that the systems in question will be more vulnerable than before to hacking,” the order stated.
The injunction prevents the Treasury Department from granting access to personally identifiable or confidential financial records to special government employees, political appointees, or other non-civil servant personnel. Only civil servants working within the Bureau of Fiscal Services, who require such access for their official duties and have undergone background checks, are permitted to view the data.
Furthermore, the judge ordered all individuals under the injunction to destroy any records in their possession immediately. These restrictions will remain in place until at least February 14, when the next court hearing is scheduled.
The decision is the latest in a series of controversies surrounding Musk’s involvement in government affairs during Trump’s second term. Musk’s Doge initiative has spearheaded deep budget cuts at various federal agencies, including the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which oversees billions of dollars in global aid distribution.
The White House, President Trump, and Musk have not yet issued any statements in response to the ruling. The case has raised broader concerns over privacy and data security, particularly regarding government transparency and the extent of private-sector influence over public resources. The upcoming court hearing in February is expected to further clarify the legality of Doge’s operations and Musk’s role within the administration.
As the legal battle unfolds, the ruling represents a significant pushback against efforts to expand private-sector involvement in government data management, underscoring the ongoing tension between federal oversight and executive power.
