An unexpected appointment at the US Treasury Department has caused concern among senators.
The US Treasury Department has confirmed that a visiting tech executive has been given read-only access to the department’s payment system as part of a performance review, according to a response letter to Senator Ron Wyden, who asked for clarification on the matter.
The letter states that Tom Krause, CEO of Cloud Software Group, which owns Citrix and Netscaler, has been hired as a “special government employee,” a category that allows private sector professionals to temporarily hold positions in the executive branch. Elon Musk is also reported to be working in this capacity.
The Treasury Department has presented Krause’s involvement with the department’s systems as an internal audit aimed at finding inefficient processes. The letter states that Treasury employees working with Krause will only have access to encrypted payment system data to conduct performance reviews.
However, senators have raised concerns about the DOGE team’s access to Treasury systems. According to politicians, Musk’s employees have gained full access to the payment system that handles Social Security payments, tax credits, and payments to federal employees and contractors.
The Treasury Department confirmed that Krause was hired as a consultant to help evaluate the operational efficiency of federal payment systems, working with experienced department specialists and adhering to all security and privacy standards. In addition to Krause, former SpaceX and X engineer Marko Elez was also allegedly given access to the Treasury system. Elez is rumored to have full administrator access and has already made changes to the payment software code to add features that block the transfer of funds.
Senator Wyden sharply criticized the Treasury Department’s response, saying that the government is trying to cover up the situation while Musk consolidates his influence. Senators protested DOGE’s access to Treasury systems, as well as the Office of Personnel Management, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the General Services Administration.
Recently, labor unions representing 7.2 million people filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury Department for handing over sensitive citizen data to Elon Musk’s Office of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The lawsuit alleges that the data transfer violates the Privacy Act, which prohibits federal agencies from sharing personal information without consent except in strictly regulated circumstances. However, DOGE employees, many of whom are under 20 and have no government experience, were given full and permanent access to the data.
The US Treasury Department has confirmed that a visiting tech executive has been given read-only access to the department’s payment system as part of a performance review, according to a response letter to Senator Ron Wyden, who asked for clarification on the matter.
The letter states that Tom Krause, CEO of Cloud Software Group, which owns Citrix and Netscaler, has been hired as a “special government employee,” a category that allows private sector professionals to temporarily hold positions in the executive branch. Elon Musk is also reported to be working in this capacity.
The Treasury Department has presented Krause’s involvement with the department’s systems as an internal audit aimed at finding inefficient processes. The letter states that Treasury employees working with Krause will only have access to encrypted payment system data to conduct performance reviews.
However, senators have raised concerns about the DOGE team’s access to Treasury systems. According to politicians, Musk’s employees have gained full access to the payment system that handles Social Security payments, tax credits, and payments to federal employees and contractors.
The Treasury Department confirmed that Krause was hired as a consultant to help evaluate the operational efficiency of federal payment systems, working with experienced department specialists and adhering to all security and privacy standards. In addition to Krause, former SpaceX and X engineer Marko Elez was also allegedly given access to the Treasury system. Elez is rumored to have full administrator access and has already made changes to the payment software code to add features that block the transfer of funds.
Senator Wyden sharply criticized the Treasury Department’s response, saying that the government is trying to cover up the situation while Musk consolidates his influence. Senators protested DOGE’s access to Treasury systems, as well as the Office of Personnel Management, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the General Services Administration.
Recently, labor unions representing 7.2 million people filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury Department for handing over sensitive citizen data to Elon Musk’s Office of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The lawsuit alleges that the data transfer violates the Privacy Act, which prohibits federal agencies from sharing personal information without consent except in strictly regulated circumstances. However, DOGE employees, many of whom are under 20 and have no government experience, were given full and permanent access to the data.