Social Security Workers Aren't Allowed to Read This Story

Employees astatine the Social Security Administration (SSA) were informed connected Thursday greeting that caller rules forbid them from accessing “general news” websites, including those which person been astatine the forefront of the reporting connected Elon Musk’s alleged Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort.

In an email reviewed by WIRED and addressed to “all SSA employees” from a mailing database called “internal communications,” the bureau informed employees that it was “implementing further restrictions to the categories of websites prohibited from government-furnished equipment. Effective today, March 6, 2025, the categories include: Online shopping; General News; and Sports.” The header work “Internet Browsing from Government Equipment.”

The email did not specify which websites successful peculiar were to beryllium blocked. However, WIRED has confirmed with 2 sources wrong the SSA that wired.com is nary longer accessible today, though it was accessible previously.

The sources besides confirmed that the websites of The Washington Post, The New York Times, and MSNBC were inaccessible. However, the sources were capable to entree different quality websites including Politico and Axios.

“Local quality blocked,” says 1 root astatine SSA, who was granted anonymity implicit fears of retribution. “So if determination was a section shooting oregon something, I wouldn’t beryllium capable to see.”

It’s unclear who has implemented the artifact database oregon what criteria were utilized to populate it, but it appears not to beryllium based connected ideological grounds, arsenic Fox News and Breitbart are besides blocked.

On Friday, weeks aft DOGE engineers were installed astatine SSA, the bureau announced plans to cut 7,000 employees. Many of the agency’s astir senior staff person resigned. This includes erstwhile SSA commissioner Michelle King, who has decades of acquisition wrong the agency. She was replaced by acting commissioner Leland Dudek, a mid-level staffer who claimed successful a LinkedIn post, reviewed by WIRED, that helium had been punished by King for helping DOGE engineers erstwhile they archetypal arrived. Musk and Donald Trump person besides continued to propulsion the conspiracy mentation that millions of dormant radical are continuing to cod societal information benefits, contempt the information those claims person been debunked.

In the hours aft the archetypal email was sent astir blocking quality sites, immoderate employees received different email from their managers providing instructions connected however to disable quality showing up connected the Edge landing page. This was not a request but a proposal to assistance employees defy the temptation to click connected quality links, a root who had received the email told WIRED.

Those trying to sojourn wired.com were greeted with a leafage replicating overmuch of what was successful the archetypal email. It besides listed a “URL Reputiation” score, though it was unclear wherever that people was being sourced from, oregon if it has a bearing connected tract access. Different blocked quality websites were fixed antithetic scores, according to screenshots viewed by WIRED.

SSA employees typically usage computers with Microsoft’s Edge installed arsenic the net browser. The default landing leafage connected that browser is acceptable to amusement quality headlines, according to respective sources astatine SSA.

“Employees with a morganatic concern [sic] should taxable an objection SAM petition for their supervisor's review,” the email continued. “These further restrictions volition assistance trim hazard and amended support the delicate accusation entrusted to america successful our galore systems.”

On Reddit, aggregate members of the FedNews subreddit who said they worked astatine the SSA claimed that accessing quality successful a timely mode was an indispensable portion of their job. Others pointed retired that being capable to marque purchases online was a halfway constituent of their work.

The SSA did not instantly respond to a petition for remark astir the caller restrictions. Employees astatine respective different US authorities agencies contacted by WIRED said akin blocks connected quality pages had not been implemented connected their networks.