Elon Musk’s DOGE and the Social Security Fraud Myth: A Closer Look

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has stirred controversy with claims that the Social Security Administration (SSA) is riddled with fraud, alleging that 150-year-olds are collecting benefits. As reported by WIRED, Musk’s assertions, amplified during an Oval Office press conference in February 2025, lack evidence and oversimplify a complex issue tied to outdated technology. This narrative, driven by Musk’s team of young engineers and his own social media megaphone, risks undermining trust in a critical safety net while raising alarms about data privacy and agency operations. Here’s a deep dive into the claims, the reality, and the implications for Social Security’s future.Musk’s central claim—that a “cursory examination” of SSA records revealed 150-year-olds receiving benefits—sparked immediate skepticism. He doubled down on X, posting a screenshot purportedly from the SSA database showing millions of people aged 100 and older with the “death field” set to “FALSE.” The numbers, totaling nearly 400 million, far exceed the U.S. population of 341 million and the 73 million SSA beneficiaries in 2024. Experts quickly pointed to a simpler explanation: the SSA’s reliance on COBOL, a 60-year-old programming language. COBOL lacks a date type, so systems often default to a reference point—commonly May 20, 1875—when birth dates are missing or incomplete. In 2025, such entries would appear as 150 years old, but they don’t indicate active payments. The SSA’s own policy, in place since 2015, halts benefits at age 115, and a 2023 inspector general report found 98% of those listed as 100 or older receive no payments.

The claim’s traction owes much to Musk’s platform and DOGE’s aggressive narrative. Right-wing commentators on X and pro-Trump media outlets seized on the story, framing it as evidence of government waste. Yet, Michael Astrue, SSA commissioner under Presidents Bush and Obama, dismissed the fraud allegations, telling NPR that DOGE’s team—mostly young engineers unfamiliar with COBOL—misinterpreted the data. “They drew a conclusion based on their own lack of understanding,” Astrue said, faulting Musk for not admitting the error. Tiffany Flick, former SSA chief of staff, echoed this in a lawsuit affidavit, noting DOGE’s questions stemmed from a “general myth of supposed widespread fraud.”

DOGE’s approach has raised broader concerns. The team, led by Musk allies like Steve Davis and including young operatives like 25-year-old Marko Elez, who reportedly has admin privileges over Treasury payment systems, has been granted sweeping access to sensitive SSA data. WIRED reported that Elez, a former SpaceX and X engineer, can write code for systems handling Social Security payments, raising fears of unauthorized changes. A federal judge briefly blocked DOGE’s access in February 2025, though the Supreme Court later allowed it to resume. Critics, including Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, have called DOGE’s actions “illegal raids,” while Thomas Drake, a former NSA whistleblower, warned that DOGE’s “wrecking ball” approach threatens the privacy of millions.

Musk’s team has also pushed for drastic changes, including a plan to rewrite SSA’s COBOL-based systems—tens of millions of lines of code—in mere months, a process experts say would typically take years. WIRED noted that such a rushed migration could disrupt payments to 65 million beneficiaries, risking “system collapse.” SSA’s website has already faced crashes and long phone wait times following DOGE-driven cuts, per The Washington Post. Meanwhile, DOGE’s “Are You Alive Project,” which involves calling beneficiaries to verify status, reflects a focus on perceived fraud that experts like Chuck Blahous of the Mercatus Center argue is overblown. Blahous told CBS News that Social Security’s improper payment rates are among the lowest in federal programs, with a 2021 inspector general report citing just $298 million in post-death payments, mostly due to procedural errors, not fraud.

The fallout extends beyond operations. Musk’s rhetoric, calling Social Security a “Ponzi scheme” on Joe Rogan’s podcast and claiming $1 billion in weekly fraud, has fueled public distrust. President Trump echoed these claims in a congressional address, alleging 16 million people aged 100 to 159 are listed in the database, despite no evidence supporting such scale. Democratic lawmakers and advocacy groups, like the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, have rallied against DOGE, warning that cuts could harm vulnerable retirees and disabled Americans. Max Richtman, the group’s CEO, told Newsweek that beneficiaries “cannot trust Trump and Musk with their crucial federal benefits.”

For beneficiaries, the stakes are high. Social Security supports over 70 million Americans, forming a lifeline for retirees and disabled individuals. While improper payments exist—$214 million unrecovered from post-death errors in 2021—they pale compared to Musk’s claims of $100 billion in annual fraud. For policymakers, the episode highlights the need to modernize SSA’s systems responsibly, not through hasty overhauls. As posts on X reflect, public sentiment is mixed, with some decrying Musk’s “vampire” jokes as trivializing a serious issue, while others see DOGE as a bold reformer.

Musk’s DOGE has cast a spotlight on Social Security, but its fraud narrative oversimplifies a technical glitch and risks destabilizing a vital program. Balancing efficiency with accountability will require expertise and transparency, not social media stunts. As DOGE’s influence persists, its next moves could shape the future of America’s social safety net—for better or worse.