Federal employees have filed a lawsuit demanding that the US Office of Personnel Management disconnect a server reportedly used by Elon Musk’s associates. The motion, filed today as part of a class action lawsuit and obtained by Wired, claims that the new server connected to OPM systems is a violation of federal laws and also poses a privacy threat to government employees.
OPM is essentially the federal government’s human resources department, which stores sensitive personal information about current and prospective employees. The mail server reportedly gathers information from OPM’s information systems, according to the initial lawsuit, which seeks to block Musk’s access to this private information. Under the E-Government Act of 2002, government agencies are required to conduct privacy assessments before making significant changes to IT systems, but today’s motion alleges that OPM failed to conduct such an assessment before installing the server.
On Friday, Reuters reported that senior OPM officials were locked out of the department’s information systems by alleged Musk allies. “We can’t see what they’re doing with the computer and data systems,” said one of the unnamed officials. “This is a big concern. There is no oversight. This creates real threats to cybersecurity and hacking.”
Reuters sources spoke to the publication anonymously for fear of retaliation. Interim US Attorney Ed Martin has already expressed his support for Musk’s activities on X. “We will pursue any legal action against anyone who interferes with your work or threatens your people,” he wrote, referring to the Department of Government Performance, which Musk heads.
OPM is not the only government agency where Musk may be establishing his ties. Wired separately reported that a former employee of the South African billionaire allegedly has direct access to the US Treasury Department’s systems. A group of labor unions and pensioner advocates sued the Treasury Department for granting DOGE permission to access these systems.
