The Trump administration's National Design Studio has come under fire after an investigation alleged that several federal websites it developed included visitor tracking technology that privacy advocates say may not have complied with federal transparency requirements.
The White House denies any wrongdoing and says its staff operates within all applicable legal obligations.
The National Design Studio was established by executive order in August 2025 as a temporary office within the Executive Office of the President. Led by Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia and staffed largely by former members of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, the group was created to modernise government digital services. Since then, it has taken on projects involving passport applications, prescription drug pricing, children's savings accounts, and voter registration.
Federal Website Rebuild Sparks Privacy Questions
According to an investigation, the National Design Studio developed and operates several public-facing government websites, including ndstudio.gov, trumprx.gov, realfood.gov, and trumpaccounts.gov. The publication reported that these sites used commercial visitor analytics software and did not appear to include public privacy documentation normally required under legislation such as the Privacy Act of 1974 and the E-Government Act of 2002.
An opaque WH office of many former DOGE staff has quietly rebuilt some of the most sensitive federal government websites—for passport applications, voter registration, RX pricing & children’s savings—to track users & seemingly violates federal law.https://t.co/xFZXY8cbVZ
— april brady (@april_brady) June 29, 2026
The report also raised questions about the office's transparency. Searches of USAspending, the federal government's contracting database, reportedly did not show records relating to the studio's spending or vendor arrangements, prompting questions from critics about how the organisation is funded and overseen.
The investigation said its analysis of the websites' source code found that at least two government websites used PostHog, a commercial analytics platform capable of recording user interactions. Another tool, described as being developed in-house, allegedly transmitted visitor data to a destination that was not publicly visible.
The publication further reported that some of the tracking software disappeared after it contacted the White House with detailed questions. It remains unclear why the code was removed, and there has been no official confirmation that any data was improperly collected or retained.
Tracking Technology And Legal Concerns
Privacy advocates argued that the use of such technology on government websites could create legal and ethical concerns if appropriate public disclosures were not provided.
John Davisson, senior counsel at the Electronic Privacy Information Center, told the newspaper that the National Design Studio appeared to be creating what he described as an alternative version of federal digital infrastructure operating outside normal privacy safeguards. He argued that agencies collecting personal information online are generally expected to publish privacy impact assessments explaining what information is collected, how it is stored, and where it is sent.
Researchers also noted that PostHog's session recording feature can capture clicks, scrolling behaviour and other interactions during a visitor's session. According to the investigation, the software had reportedly been configured in a way that made requests appear to come from government domains rather than directly from a third-party provider, making them less likely to be blocked by browser privacy tools.
It was reported that none of the websites examined appeared to include public notices specifically describing the alleged tracking systems. However, no court or federal authority has determined that the National Design Studio violated federal privacy law.
Vote.gov And Passport Services Draw Further Attention
The investigation also examined the National Design Studio's work on services traditionally managed by other federal agencies.
Among them was a White House-controlled version of Vote.gov, the federal voter registration website overseen by the independent Election Assistance Commission. Public records reportedly show that the preview version operated on infrastructure linked to the Executive Office of the President, prompting concerns from some election officials and privacy specialists about governance and oversight.
The Election Assistance Commission later stated that discussions with the National Design Studio had taken place regarding possible modernisation of Vote.gov, but said the project had since been paused. The commission added that the live Vote.gov website remains under its own control and is not integrated with White House systems. However, it was also reported that passports.gov was being operated through White House-managed infrastructure rather than the State Department's traditional online platform.
A State Department spokesperson said the department was working closely with the White House to improve passport services while maintaining the security of passport programmes and related technology.
White House Rejects Allegations
White House spokesperson Liz Huston rejected suggestions that the National Design Studio had acted improperly.
'All National Design Studio personnel comply with all legal requirements in their important work to improve how citizens interact with their government,' Huston said in a statement.
There has been no official finding that the office breached federal privacy laws, and questions remain over what information, if any, was collected, retained or accessed through the reported tracking systems.
