The Social Security Administration official who alleged in a whistleblower complaint that the Department of Government Efficiency put the personal data of millions of Americans on a vulnerable server, said in an email Friday he’s submitting his “involuntary resignation” because of actions the agency has taken against him.
Charles Borges, who’d been the SSA’s chief data officer, said in an email to colleagues — which was obtained by NBC News from a person who received it — that he had experienced retaliation since his whistleblower complaint became public.
He said the SSA’s actions “make my duties impossible to perform legally and ethically” and have caused him “physical, mental and emotional distress.”
He added that since reporting his concerns to management, he has “suffered exclusion, isolation, internal strife, and a culture of fear, creating a hostile work environment and making work conditions intolerable.”
Borges, his attorneys and SSA did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Borges’ complaint had accused SSA Chief Information Officer Aram Moghaddassi, a longtime ally of Elon Musk, of violating agency policies to “create a live copy of the country’s Social Security information in a cloud environment that circumvents oversight,” in violation of multiple federal statutes.
The file contained the identifying information of more than 300 million Americans, including Social Security numbers and other sensitive information, the complaint said.
Social Security Administration spokesperson Nick Perrine said earlier this week that the data referred to in the complaint was “walled off from the internet” and accessible to high-level career officials with proper oversight.
“We are not aware of any compromise to this environment and remain dedicated to protecting sensitive personal data,” Perrine said in a statement.
After sending out his email, Borges posted on LinkedIn, “It is never wrong to be morally and ethically right with yourself.”
Julia Jester contributed.
