Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is seeking access to the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) highly confidential taxpayer data system, according to a source familiar with the situation.

The IRS, which safeguards private financial details such as tax returns, Social Security numbers, and banking information for millions of Americans, has become the latest target of DOGE’s efforts to downsize the federal workforce and eliminate what it deems waste, fraud, and abuse within the government.

Gavin Kliger, a software engineer working with DOGE, is expected to receive access to the IRS system soon, the source said. He will be stationed at the agency for at least 120 days, though as of Sunday night, he had not yet received formal approval.

White House deputy press secretary Harrison Fields defended the initiative, stating that direct system access is necessary to uncover and address systemic inefficiencies. “DOGE will continue to expose fraud because Americans deserve transparency on how their tax dollars are spent,” Fields told CNN.

Kliger will serve as a senior adviser to the acting IRS commissioner, though his specific role remains unclear. He holds the necessary security clearance and is expected to sign a confidentiality agreement mandating the destruction of any accessed tax information upon his departure from the IRS.

This agreement is part of a broader memorandum under consideration that would grant DOGE officials extensive access to IRS systems, including the Integrated Data Retrieval System (IDRS). The IDRS contains highly sensitive taxpayer information, and only authorized IRS employees can use it for official purposes. The agency has strict rules preventing unauthorized access, with penalties ranging from termination to imprisonment.

Concerns over potential misuse of taxpayer data have prompted Democratic Senators Ron Wyden and Elizabeth Warren to demand transparency from the IRS. In a letter sent Monday, they requested details on any agreements allowing DOGE members access to internal IRS systems, warning that such access could violate federal privacy laws. The senators emphasized that legal protections exist to prevent political appointees from accessing Americans’ private tax records, and they cautioned that granting DOGE broad entry to these systems may be unlawful.