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| The Internal Revenue Service holds a massive trove of sensitive data about American taxpayers that would be of inestimable value to a company operating in the private sector. Protecting it is a matter of national security, writes William Michael Cunningham. |
Banks and financial institutions should be especially alarmed by the possibility of exploitation of government financial data by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, led by billionaire Tesla Founder Elon Musk. This isn't merely a regulatory or privacy issue — it strikes at the heart of the financial system that banks depend on for stability and accurate credit assessments. Reliable data is critical for risk management, lending decisions and maintaining consumer confidence. When such data is misappropriated, it can distort market signals and upend established financial practices.
At the core of this crisis is a dataset of staggering value. The IRS' comprehensive historical record — encompassing income, wealth and business transactions — is, according to my estimate, worth between $750 billion and $1 trillion. In tandem, the Treasury Payment System Database, which processes over $6 trillion in annual federal payments, adds $450 billion to $500 billion in value. Combined, these datasets represent approximately $1.5 trillion in economic value, a figure that underscores both their unparalleled informational worth and the catastrophic impact their misuse could have on national economic stability. (One can only imagine what China, Russia or a large hedge fund would pay for access to these systems and their data.)
I am concerned that the Department of the Treasury may improperly grant access to these critical datasets to DOGE. Given the clear commercial value of the data in question, I believe the information could be exploited by a company, such as Musk's X platform, to enhance a proprietary financial AI system. This system, built on misappropriated data, could enable hyper-targeted advertising, deliver powerful tailored investment strategies and generate economic forecasts with alarming precision — effectively supplanting traditional financial institutions and credit bureaus while consolidating unprecedented power within a single private entity.
The IRS and Treasury data could certainly be used to give a private sector digital currency or payments platform an edge. According to Forbes Magazine, "Since Musk bought Twitter and rebranded it X he has been acquiring money transmitter licenses in states across the country as part of a grand plan to grow X into an 'everything app' similar to China's WeChat."
There is no viable solution to this breach other than the complete destruction of any AI training model that has been granted access to the data or, alternatively, making the dataset universally available to all. The nature of AI development means that once these models have been trained on illicitly obtained information, their outputs remain irreversibly influenced, making containment impossible without full transparency or eradication.
In light of these factors, on February 3, 2025, I filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction to block DOGE's access to this critical financial data. This emergency legal step is designed to halt any ongoing misuse of government-held data that could not only damage our national security but would also vandalize the integrity of the banking system that underpins our economy.
The possible exploitation of America's Treasury data represents a real, ongoing and measurable threat to our banking system. It is imperative that regulators, policymakers and financial institutions act swiftly to ensure that this invaluable asset is safeguarded against those who would use it to manipulate markets and undermine public trust.