2025-02-04 21:10:42| Engadget
Federal employees are suing to disconnect a server, reportedly operated by associates of Elon Musk, from the US Office of Personnel Management. A motion filed today as part of a class action suit and obtained by Wired claims that the new server connected to OPM systems is a violation of federal laws as well as a privacy risk for government staffers.
The OPM is essentially the federal government's human resources department, and it houses sensitive personal information about current and prospective employees. The email server is reportedly harvesting information from OPM's data systems, according to the initial lawsuit that is seeking to block Musk's access to that private information. Government agencies are required to conduct privacy assessments before making substantial changes to IT systems under the 2002 E-Government Act, but today's motion alleges the OPM did not perform that assessment before the server was installed.
On Friday, Reuters reported that senior officials at the OPM were locked out of the department's data systems, ostensibly by Musk's allies. "We have no visibility into what they are doing with the computer and data systems," one of the unnamed officials said. "That is creating great concern. There is no oversight. It creates real cybersecurity and hacking implications."
Reuters' sources spoke anonymously with the publication out of fear of retaliation. Interim US Attorney Ed Martin has already posted his support for Musk's activities on X. "We will pursue any and all legal action against anyone who impedes your work or threatens your people," he wrote, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, which Musk spearheads.
The OPM isn't the only government agency where Musk may be installing his connections. Wired separately reported that a former employee of the South African billionaire allegedly has direct access to systems in the US Treasury Department. A group of labor unions and retiree advocates has sued the Treasury for granting DOGE permission to access those systems.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/government-workers-sue-over-potentially-illegal-doge-server-201042201.html?src=rss
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