The judge Paul Engelmayer slammed on the brakes after democratic justice ministers from 19 states on Friday sued Donald Trump. In the lawsuit, they claim that the Trump administration, in violation of the law, has given Musk's employees access to the central payment system of the Finance Department.
The system contains extensive personal and economic information about millions of Americans, including social security numbers and account numbers. Billions of dollars are paid out annually through the system.
Engelmayer, appointed by President Barack Obama, also announced that all those prohibited from accessing the sensitive information must immediately destroy all copies of material downloaded from the Finance Department's system.
Elon Musk's Doge (Department of Government Efficiency) was created to find and eliminate what the Trump administration has considered waste of government funds.
The White House has not yet commented on the lawsuit.
