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Data privacy experts call DOGE actions ‘alarming’

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lailluminator.com – Paige Gross – 2025-03-29 15:00:00

by Paige Gross, Louisiana Illuminator
March 29, 2025

While the role and actions of the Elon Musk-headed Department of Government Efficiency remain somewhat murky, data privacy experts have been tracking the group’s moves and documenting potential violations of federal privacy protections.

Before President Donald Trump took office in January, he characterized DOGE as an advisory body, saying it would “provide advice and guidance from outside of government” in partnership with the the White House and Office of Management and Budget in order to eliminate fraud and waste from government spending.

But on Inauguration day, Trump’s executive order establishing the group said Musk would have “full and prompt access to all unclassified agency records, software systems and IT systems.”

In the nine weeks since its formation, DOGE has been able to access sensitive information from the Treasury Department payment system, information about the headcount and budget of an intelligence agency and Americans’ Social Security numbers, health information and other demographic data. Musk and department staffers are also using artificial intelligence in their analysis of department cuts.

Though the Trump administration has not provided transparency around what the collected data is being used for, several federal agencies have laid off tens of thousands of workers, under the direction of DOGE, in the past two months. Thousands have been cut from the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Education, Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Treasury this month.

Frank Torres, senior AI and privacy adviser for The Leadership Conference’s Center for Civil Rights and Technology, which researches the intersection of civil rights and technology, said his organization partnered with the Center for Democracy and Technology, which researches and works with legislators on tech topics, to sort out what DOGE was doing. The organizations published a resource sheet documenting DOGE’s actions, the data privacy violations they are concerned about and the lawsuits that several federal agencies have filed over DOGE’s actions. 

“It doesn’t have to be this way,” Torres said. “I mean, there are processes and procedures and protections in place that are put in place for a reason, and it doesn’t appear that DOGE is following any of that, which is alarming.”

The organizations outlined potential violations of federal privacy protections, like the Privacy Act of 1974, which prohibits the disclosure of information without written consent, and substantive due process under the Fifth Amendment, which protects privacy from government interference.

White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Harrison Fields would not say if DOGE planned to provide more insight into its plans for the data it is accessing.

“Waste, fraud and abuse have been deeply entrenched in our broken system for far too long,” Fields told States Newsroom in an emailed statement. “It takes direct access to the system to identify and fix it. DOGE will continue to shine a light on the fraud they uncover as the American people deserve to know what their government has been spending their hard earned tax dollars on.”

The lack of transparency concerns U.S. Reps. Gerald E. Connolly, (D-Virginia) and  Jamie Raskin, (D-Maryland), who filed a Freedom of Information Act request this month requesting DOGE provide clear answers about its operations.

The request asks for details on who is in charge at DOGE, the scope of its authority to close federal agencies and lay off federal employees, the extent of its access to sensitive government sensitive databases and for Musk to outline how collected data may benefit his own companies and his foreign customers. They also questioned the feeding of sensitive information into AI systems, which DOGE touted last month.

“DOGE employees, including teenage and twenty-something computer programmers from Mr. Musk’s own companies, have been unleashed on the government’s most sensitive databases — from those containing national security and classified information to those containing the personal financial information of all Americans to those containing the trade secrets and sensitive commercial data of Mr. Musk’s competitors,” the representatives wrote in the request.

Most Americans have indeed submitted data to the federal government which can now be accessed by DOGE, said Elizabeth Laird, the director of equity in civic technology for the Center for Democracy and Technology — whether it be via a tax filing, student loan or Social Security. Laird said the two organizations see huge security concerns with how DOGE is collecting data and what it may be doing with the information. In the first few weeks of its existence, a coder discovered that anyone could access the database that posted updates to the DOGE.gov website.

“We’re talking about Social Security numbers, we’re talking about income, we’re talking about, you know, major life events, like whether you had a baby or got married,” Laird said. “We’re talking about if you’ve ever filed bankruptcy — like very sensitive stuff, and we’re talking about it for tens of millions of people.”

With that level of sensitive information, the business need should justify the level of risk, Laird said.

DOGE’s use of AI to comb through and categorize Americans’ data is concerning to Laird and Torres, as AI algorithms can produce inaccurate responses, pose security risks themselves and can have biases that lead to discrimination against marginalized groups.

While Torres, Laird and their teams plan to continue tracking DOGE’s actions and their potential privacy violations, they published the first resource sheet to start bringing awareness to the information that is already at risk. The data collection they’ve seen so far in an effort to cut federal spending is concerning, but both said they fear Americans’ data could end up being used in ways we don’t yet know about.

“The government has a wealth of data on all of us, and I would say data that’s probably very valuable on the open market,” Torres said. “It’s almost like a dossier on us from birth to death.”

Musk fired back at critics in an interview with Fox News published Thursday.

“They’ll say what we’re doing is somehow unconstitutional or illegal or whatever,” he said. “We’re like, ‘Well, which line of the cost savings do you disagree with?’ And they can’t point to any.”

Last updated 2:43 p.m., Mar. 28, 2025

Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com.

The post Data privacy experts call DOGE actions ‘alarming’ appeared first on lailluminator.com

News from the South - Louisiana News Feed

Louisiana leaders offer condolences in remembrance of Pope Francis

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wgno.com – Raeven Poole – 2025-04-21 09:28:00

SUMMARY: Louisiana officials, including Archbishop Gregory Aymond and Governor Jeff Landry, have expressed condolences following the death of Pope Francis, who served as the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church for 12 years. Pope Francis passed away shortly after delivering his final Easter Mass on April 20. Leaders highlighted his compassion, humility, and dedication to the marginalized. Congressman Troy Carter praised the Pope’s unwavering moral clarity, while Senator Bill Cassidy noted his focus on mercy. Local representatives shared personal memories, acknowledging the profound impact Pope Francis had on global communities and his leadership in promoting justice, mercy, and peace.

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The post Louisiana leaders offer condolences in remembrance of Pope Francis appeared first on wgno.com

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KSAT's RJ Marquez breaks down life of Pope Francis after his passing

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KSAT's RJ Marquez breaks down life of Pope Francis after his passing

www.youtube.com – KSAT 12 – 2025-04-21 07:59:06

SUMMARY: Pope Francis, the first Latin American pontiff, passed away at 88, marking the end of a transformative papacy that began in 2013. Known for his humility and dedication to the poor, he engaged with global issues like capitalism and climate change, which alienated some conservatives. He had recently faced health challenges, including chronic lung disease and double pneumonia. His approachable style included riding in an open-air car and washing prisoners’ feet. He advocated for tolerance within the Church, notably addressing LGBTQ+ issues and emphasizing zero tolerance for child sex abuse. His legacy will continue to impact the Catholic Church and the world.

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Church bells tolled in mourning. Well-wishers flocked into pews. Tributes to Pope Francis poured in from around the world on Monday after the Vatican announced the pontiff’s death at age 88.

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Judge to weigh Louisiana AG’s challenge to New Orleans jail’s ‘sanctuary’ policy

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lailluminator.com – Bobbi-Jean Misick, Verite – 2025-04-20 15:33:00

by Bobbi-Jean Misick, Verite, Louisiana Illuminator
April 20, 2025

NEW ORLEANS – Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill is pushing forward with her efforts to force Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson to drop a longtime policy that generally prohibits deputies from directly engaging in federal immigration enforcement within the city’s jail.

In legal filings, Murrill claims the policy — which the state characterizes as a so-called “sanctuary city” policy —  is in direct conflict with a newly passed state law that requires state and local law enforcement agencies to cooperate with federal immigration agencies.

“The consent decree now sits fundamentally at odds with state law as applicable to immigration detainers,” Murrill said in court documents filed Friday (April 11).

A federal court will now determine whether to allow the state of Louisiana to join a 2011 federal suit that resulted in the policy and whether to throw out the policy altogether. A hearing has been set for April 30.

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The state’s campaign against “sanctuary” policies comes as President Donald Trump is pushing local law enforcement agencies to join the federal government in his promised immigration crackdown. Since his inauguration, Trump has ordered the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to push for more partnerships between local law enforcement units and federal immigration agencies. A few have already signed up. Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, a longtime immigration hardliner and Trump ally, has worked with Republican lawmakers in the state to enact laws that encourage those collaborations.

As attorney general, Landry criticized a policy adopted by the New Orleans Police Department, under a long-running federal consent decree that blocks officers from enforcing immigration laws.

Neither Murrill’s office nor representatives for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement responded to requests for comment.

In court filings, Murrill said Hutson “does not oppose the [state’s] intervention” in the case.” But a spokesperson for Hutson said that’s not exactly true.

“It’s more accurate that we take no position regarding the state intervention,” a Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said in an emailed statement on Wednesday.

While she has not taken a position for or against increased collaboration with ICE, in an interview with Fox 8 in December, Hutson noted that the jail’s resources were far too stretched to take on immigration enforcement.

“I’m a lawyer. I believe in following the law and court orders and we do that and so that’s what we’re gonna do, continue to follow the law, but I cannot do ICE’s work,” she said. “It’s too big of a load.”

Potential conflict

The sheriff’s policy stems from a 2013 federal court settlement in a civil rights case involving two New Orleans construction workers picked up on minor charges in 2009 and 2010.

Mario Cacho and Antonio Ocampo sued after they were allegedly illegally held in the city’s jail past the completion of their sentences. The two were held at the request of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agency issues such “detainer” requests to local law enforcement agencies, asking them to hold onto arrestees who are suspected of immigration violations.

Local agencies are only supposed to honor the hold requests for 48 hours, after which they should let detainees free. But in 2009 and 2010, then-Sheriff Marlin Gusman detained Cacho and Ocampo for months, according to legal filings in their case against the office.

Ocampo and Cacho settled the case with the Sheriff’s Office in 2013, and Gusman agreed to adopt a new policy on immigration investigations. The resulting policy blocks the agency from investigating immigration violations and from detaining immigrants for ICE without a court order, except in certain cases where they are facing charges for a small number of serious violent crimes.

Attorneys for Cacho and Ocampo declined to speak with Verite News on the record. However, filings they submitted to the court last week opposing the state’s intervention in the case argue  that Murrill has “blatantly misrepresented the OPSO policy” by falsely claiming it forces the Sheriff’s Office to disregard all ICE detainers.

The sheriff’s office, like the NOPD, has been under a sweeping federal consent decree for more than a decade. But unlike the NOPD, the jail’s consent decree does not demand that deputies stay away from federal immigration enforcement, only that it release anyone subject to an immigration hold after two days. The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, which is a party to both consent decrees, has not entered any filings since Murrill moved to bring the state into the Cacho and Ocampo case.

The Department of Justice did not respond to a request for comment.

The OPSO policy remained in place for more than a decade without any controversy until last spring, when the Louisiana Legislature passed a bill — Act 314 — that blocks so-called “sanctuary” policies prohibiting state and local law enforcement officers from cooperating with federal immigration agencies like ICE.

A sheriff’s office spokesperson spokesperson said the agency’s policy on ICE detainers is “governed” by the consent judgement in the case. She declined to comment further, as the state is currently challenging the policy, but affirmed that OPSO is “in full compliance with all applicable state laws and valid court orders related to ICE detainers.”

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This article first appeared on Verite News New Orleans and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: “https://veritenews.org/2025/04/16/judge-to-weigh-new-orleans-jail-sanctuary-murrill/”, urlref: window.location.href }); } }

Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com.

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