United States of America: Court issued temporary restraining order against DOGE access to sensitive personal information

On 7 February 2025, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a temporary restraining order preventing employees of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing sensitive information within the Treasury Department's Bureau of Fiscal Services, including bank accounts and social security numbers. The case, brought by the California Attorney General and 19 other state attorneys general, argues that the Trump administration's expansion of access to Treasury's payment systems violates constitutional and statutory protections and poses risks to sensitive federal payment infrastructures. The court's decision determines that only authorised Treasury Department personnel can handle such data while the case proceeds.