Latest news with #ECAS
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Musk's DOGE Goons Granted Access to Secret Data on Millions of Immigrants
Pam Bondi's Justice Department has agreed to give a handful of Elon Musk's DOGE 'advisers' access to a system containing detailed private records on millions of immigrants dating back to the 1990s. The Executive Office for Immigration Review's Courts and Appeals System, or ECAS, holds vast, comprehensive records of immigrants' personal information, as well as every interaction they've had with the U.S. government. Senior DOJ officials greenlit DOGE access to the ECAS system on Friday, The Washington Post reported. The so-called Department of Government Efficiency, a White House office headed by President Donald Trump's megadonor Musk, has been digging into confidential data systems across the federal government in an attempt to speed up the administration's deportations. DOJ staff members were instructed to prepare ECAS accounts for Marko Elez, the DOGE minion who resigned over racist social media posts before being rehired, as well as former hedge fund staffer Adam Hoffman. Payton Rehling and Jon Koval, who work at a private-equity firm tied to Musk, are also being given access, according to the Post. Contacted by the Post, the department declined to say why the access was sought and granted. The DOGE team did not respond to the paper's requests for comment. But the move comes as DOGE has been forcing its way into federal databases containing private information about immigrants—often over the objections of career civil servants. In a major policy shift, the Internal Revenue Service agreed this month to share taxpayer data with the Department of Homeland Security in an attempt to hunt down immigrants who are undocumented but nevertheless pay taxes. IRS lawyers had warned the move was potentially illegal, but Treasury Department officials bypassed the IRS's acting commissioner, Melanie Krause, to make the DHS deal. Krause quit in response, making her the third IRS chief to leave the agency in three months. Last week, DOGE members embedded with Immigration and Customs Enforcement sought private Medicare data—including personal health information and addresses—to target people for deportation. DOGE also demanded the Social Security Administration list more than 6,000 living immigrants as dead to try to force them to leave the country. Again, senior staffers warned the plan was likely illegal, and one was physically dragged out of his office after he voiced his concerns. Dozens of 'financially dead' immigrants later showed up at Social Security offices to prove they were very much alive, forcing the agency to resurrect them. DOGE's move into the ECAS system 'really hearkens to what we're seeing with Social Security, with the IRS, with data that was shared with an expectation of privacy,' Lynn Damiano Pearson, a senior staff attorney at the National Immigration Law Center, told the Post. The database contains immigrants' names, family and attorney information, addresses, court testimony, interactions with law enforcement, and motor vehicle records. For asylum seekers, the records include confidential interviews and testimony that could put their lives at risk, an unnamed official told the Post. For undocumented aliens, the ECAS records their alien registration number. Immigration attorneys told the Post the information is usually only accessible to immigrants and their lawyers. A small number of Homeland Security staff also sometimes gain access during proceedings such as immigration court appeals. Accessing the system's confidential information about court proceedings could jeopardize privacy protections both for citizens and non-citizens alike, Pearson told the Post.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Elon Musk's DOGE Gets Its Hands on Data on Millions of Immigrants
Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Justice Department have given DOGE access to a system that contains sensitive data on millions of legal and undocumented immigrants, including their addresses and detailed case histories, according to The Washington Post. The Executive Office for Immigration Review's Courts and Appeals System, or ECAS, keeps records of everyone who's been in the U.S. immigration system. Now six DOGE employees have permission to stick their hands in it. DOGE has meddled in multiple different federal databases in an effort to carry out Trump's immigration crackdown. ICE is using a Medicare database to locate undocumented immigrants. The Social Security Administration is trying to force immigrants to self-deport by falsely labeling 6,000 as dead. The Department of Housing and Urban Development is trying to prevent immigrants in mixed-status households from receiving government benefits, and the IRS is sharing migrant tax information with the Department of Homeland Security. 'It really hearkens to what we're seeing with Social Security, with the IRS, with data that was shared with an expectation of privacy, ' National Immigration Law Center senior staff attorney Lynn Damiano Pearson told the Post. She went on to note that DOGE's access to ECAS would have 'very concerning impacts for immigrants, even ones who have specifically tried to comply with government policies and do everything right, so to speak.'
Newsweek
22-04-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
DOGE Gets Access to Sensitive Data for Millions of Migrants: What To Know
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has reportedly been granted access to sensitive immigration case data. The Department of Justice (DOJ) gave permission to a team of six DOGE "advisors" to access the Executive Office for Immigration Review's Courts and Appeals System (ECAS) on Friday, according to documents seen by The Washington Post. Why It Matters ECAS includes millions of confidential records from immigration court cases, ranging from asylum claims to personal biographical information. It is not explicitly clear what DOGE's mission with this data is but it could be part of President Donald Trump's to crack down on illegal immigration. Newsweek has contacted the DOJ, via email, and DOGE, via direct message on X, for comment. What To Know Staff members at the DOJ were instructed to start preparing ECAS accounts for the DOGE team, according to The Post. The DOGE team of six reportedly includes Marko Elez, a staffer who resigned from the government in February in the wake of a scandal over his association with a social media account that promoted racism and eugenics, which was reported by The Post at the time. He was re-hired by Musk after the billionaire launched a poll on X asking people what they thought and after Vice President JD Vance backed the move, saying: "I don't think stupid social media activity should ruin a kid's life." It comes after The Post's reports last week about DOGE, along with U.S. immigration officials, seeking to use a sensitive Medicare database as part of their crackdown on undocumented immigrants. The database is believed to keep a record of personal information, including addresses, beneficiary information, Medicare claims and more. White House Senior Advisor Elon Musk walks to the White House after landing in Marine One on the South Lawn with U.S. President Donald Trump (not pictured) on March 9, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump... White House Senior Advisor Elon Musk walks to the White House after landing in Marine One on the South Lawn with U.S. President Donald Trump (not pictured) on March 9, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump was returning to the White House after spending the weekend at Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Florida. More Getty What People Are Saying The DOJ's website says: "ECAS supports the full life cycle of an immigration case including: electronic filing of court and appeals documents, processing and receiving filings, maintaining electronic Records of Proceedings (ROPs), preparing case information, conducting a hearing, and adjudicating appeals, while providing cost and time savings for all parties." Speaking about federal entitlement programs, Musk told Fox Business: "The waste and fraud in entitlement spending—which is most of the federal spending is entitlements—so, that's, like, the big one to eliminate. That's the, sort of half-trillion, maybe $6-700 billion a year." White House spokesperson Elizabeth Huston said in a statement: "President Trump promised mass deportations, and by removing the monetary incentive for illegal aliens to come and stay, we will encourage them to self-deport. He is delivering on his promise he made to the American people." What Happens Next It is not yet completely clear what DOGE will do with ECAS data. Congressional Democrats are pushing for investigations into DOGE's operations and its handling of sensitive data.
Daily Mail
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
DOGE is granted untapped access to more than 3.5million people's sensitive data
Elon Musk 's controversial Department of Government Efficiency has been granted access to the sensitive data of millions of immigrants dating back to the 1990s. It is the latest extraordinary development in the Trump administration's far-reaching efforts to track down and deport illegal immigrants using any tools at the government's disposal. The Justice Department granted a DOGE request to the Executive Office for Immigration Review's Courts and Appeals System, known as ECAS, according to the Washington Post. This database contains names, addresses, immigration testimony and court records of countless migrants - both documented and undocumented. While there is no explicit number confirming how many people are impacted, the system is reportedly dealing with a backlog of 3.5million cases. This means that at an absolute minimum, DOGE staffers will now have access to unprecedented information about every single person and case. Beyond that, a source with knowledge of the ECAS accounts told the publication the system contains information about immigrants dating back to the 1990s. 'It's every record of every interaction immigrants have had with the U.S. government in any way,' the official said. The government insider went on to say that the immigrants' family members and their addresses are also included on a file, meaning the number could actually be far greater. Immigrants seeking asylum are often asked to participate in confidential interviews or provide testimony about their reasons for wanting to emigrate to America. That information is now at the disposal of Musk's henchmen. For undocumented migrants, their alien registration number is also accessible. The Justice Department granted around six DOGE personnel access - i ncluding 25-year-old Marko Elez. Elez was forced to resign from his government job back in February after a series of shocking social media posts emerged in which he boasted that he was 'racist before it was cool,' urged followers to 'normalize Indian hate,' and mused about repealing the Civil Rights Act. But Musk brought his young protégé back into the fold just weeks later, writing on X: 'To err is human, to forgive divine,' echoing sentiments from Vice President J.D. Vance, who said 'stupid social media activity' should not 'ruin a kid's life.' Far from being sidelined, by late March Elez was embedded across multiple federal agencies, with access to troves of personal, medical, and employment data. Now, he's one of the people tasked with sifting through and examining the sensitive data of millions of vulnerable minorities and migrants. Former hedge fund employee Adam Hoffman, and two employees who work at a private-equity firm with links to Musk, Payton Rehling and Jon Koval, have also been given approval. According to the Justice Department website, ECAS 'supports the full life cycle of an immigration case' and maintains 'all records and case-related documents in electronic format.' It comes amid the Trump administration's heightened efforts to track down illegal migrants, utilizing government institutions once considered off limits for such a purpose. Officials at the Internal Revenue Service agreed to hand over the tax data of undocumented migrants earlier this month, in a pivotal departure from previous protocol. The IRS had for decades assured undocumented migrants, who contribute tens of billions of dollars in tax revenue every year, that they are safe to file their tax returns without fear of being deported. Handing over such information could help the administration track down as many as seven million people suspected of being in the United States illegally. And the Social Security Administration has listed more than 6,000 immigrants as dead in a bid to encourage them to self deport - effectively canceling the social security numbers they had legally obtained. Without social security numbers, these people will no longer have access to their banks and credit cards, nor will they receive any government benefits.
Washington Post
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Justice Dept. agrees to let DOGE access sensitive immigration case data
Representatives for the U.S. DOGE Service have received permission to access a highly sensitive Justice Department system that contains information including the addresses and case history for millions of legal and undocumented immigrants, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post. The system — the Executive Office for Immigration Review's Courts and Appeals System, or ECAS — is used to store records of immigrants who have interacted with the U.S. immigration system, detailing their name, any addresses, previous immigration-court testimony and any history of engagement with law enforcement, among other things. The Justice Department's website states that 'ECAS supports the full life cycle of an immigration case' by maintaining 'all records and case-related documents in electronic format.'
