A federal judge in Baltimore late Thursday night temporarily blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing Social Security databases for information on Americans.

U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander granted a preliminary injunction after a group of labor unions and retirees alleged the department's recent actions violate U.S. privacy laws and pose information security risks. But Hollander said DOGE employees can still access certain data that has been redacted if they go through specialized training. 

The order also instructs DOGE staffers to erase all Social Security information they have received since Inauguration Day, and they cannot make changes to computer code or software used by the Social Security Administration, per the Associated Press.

“The objective to address fraud, waste, mismanagement, and bloat is laudable, and one that the American public presumably applauds and supports,” Hollander wrote. “Indeed, the taxpayers have every right to expect their government to make sure that their hard earned money is not squandered.”

The judge said that although the mission is good, she has issues with the way that DOGE is attempting to accomplish it. 

“For some 90 years, SSA has been guided by the foundational principle of an expectation of privacy with respect to its records," the judge wrote. "This case exposes a wide fissure in the foundation."

Hollander added that her new order does not affect Social Security officials who are not sharing information with DOGE.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.