On Friday, Charles Borges, the Social Security Administration's chief data officer, resigned after filing a whistleblower complaint alleging security risks tied to the President Donald Trump administration-backed efforts to modernize the agency's data systems.
Borges Cites Retaliation, Culture Of Fear
In his resignation letter to SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano, Borges said he felt forced to step down because of "SSA’s actions against me, which make my duties impossible to perform legally and ethically," reported CBS News.
He described a "hostile work environment," citing isolation, retaliation and a "culture of panic and dread" under new leadership.
Borges had alleged that employees with the Department of Government Efficiency uploaded a copy of the nation's Social Security data to a "vulnerable cloud environment." He said repeated requests for clarity on data practices were "rebuffed or ignored."
Andrea Meza, an attorney with the Government Accountability Project representing Borges, said he could no longer, in good conscience, work for SSA, given what he had witnessed, adding he will continue cooperating with oversight bodies.
SSA Denies Breach, Stresses Data Protections
SSA spokesperson Nick Perrine said earlier that the data in question is stored in a long-standing environment used by SSA and walled off from the internet, adding that the agency is "not aware of any compromise."
SSA also said whistleblower complaints are taken seriously and that career officials oversee the environment referenced in Borges' filing.
There is currently no evidence of a breach.
Whistleblower Gets Backing From ex-SSA Chief Martin O’Malley
On LinkedIn, Borges said, "It is never wrong to be morally and ethically right with yourself."
Former SSA Commissioner Martin O'Malley praised Borges as a "patriot" for exposing "the biggest theft of personal data in U.S. history by Trump's DOGE team."
Trump's DOGE Program Faces Scrutiny
The dispute comes months after the Supreme Court allowed DOGE, which was previously overseen by tech mogul Elon Musk, to access SSA data in June, lifting a lower court injunction.
The agency, backed by Trump, had said that the move is key to rooting out fraud, pointing to outdated records showing "impossibly old" beneficiaries.
Critics, including Senate Democrats, have questioned DOGE's methods and called for audits of its access to sensitive data.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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