Protect our data from DOGE now!

Elon Musk’s invented agency DOGE is seeking to give an employee illegal access to an IRS system called the Integrated Data Retrieval System (IDRS). This system gives IRS employees access to sensitive data including personal identification numbers and bank information. Access would also allow this employee to adjust transactions and generate notices, collection documents, and other records. Currently, IDRS access is extremely limited, and there are heavy repercussions for those who illegally access information. In fact, taxpayers who have had their information wrongfully disclosed or even inspected are legally entitled to monetary damages. DOGE’s request for IDRS access flouts long-standing privacy safeguards mandated by the Privacy Act of 1974, the Internal Revenue Code, and other laws, and has raised alarms within the IRS. Allowing illegal access to a team member from DOGE, an organization whose very existence is arguably unconstitutional and undergoing legal challenges, is an attack on our democracy and privacy. I demand that you protect our data from DOGE now.