A federal judge just delivered a blow to Elon Musk’s controversial Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. Labor unions sued to stop DOGE from accessing sensitive Labor Department systems, arguing that it violates the Federal Privacy Act.

Why? Because those systems hold deeply personal information—medical and financial records of millions of Americans. Think Social Security numbers, employment histories, and even disability claims.

Judge John Bates said the lawsuit can move forward. Even if the sphere literally encompasses only one row of millions in a data set, it amounts to an intrusion, like peeking into someone's home, he said.

Not all of the union's arguments stuck. Claims against Health and Human Services for healthcare privacy breaches were tossed out.

But the bigger question remains—does DOGE, a team not created by Congress, even have the legal authority to poke around agencies like Labor?

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