An internet privacy expert has warned that the number of federal employees and judges being doxed online is soaring after information leaked about a judge who blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing sensitive Treasury payment data.
“Sadly, this isn’t an isolated incident. In this highly charged and polarized environment, judges, elected officials, and journalists who fall out of favor can face swift, aggressive online retaliation,” Ron Zayas, CEO of Ironwall by Incogni, told Newsweek.
The Context
Paul Engelmayer, judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, issued a preliminary junction on February 8, blocking DOGE from accessing Treasury Department records after 19 Democratic attorneys general sued President Donald Trump.
The judge, appointed by then-President Barack Obama in 2011, also ordered DOGE to destroy any records it might have already obtained since January 20.
Elon Musk, billionaire head of DOGE, responded by calling for Engelmayer’s impeachment in a series of furious X posts.
“A corrupt judge protecting corruption,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter, within hours of the judge’s decision. “He needs to be impeached NOW!” he added.
Engelmayer then became the target of multiple threats online, including several people posting his home address online.
What To Know
Zayas told Newsweek that Incogni, a service that removes personal information off data broker and people search sites, has since January seen a 20 percent increase in requests from people to have their personal data removed from the internet.
“The increase has been most pronounced among judicial officers and individuals employed by the federal government,” he said.
“As for what is happening right now, specifically in the judicial space, we have had to deal with doxing attempts and high-profile attacks on judges that are handling cases related to ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] raids and DOGE requests.”
Federal judges, court employees and jurors received more than 4,500 threats and inappropriate communications in 2021, according to a resolution proposed by the American Bar Association’s Government and Public Sector Lawyers Division this month. The resolution states that home addresses should fall under protected information, and only be disclosed if an individual gives consent.
Those threats can escalate into real-life violence. In 2023, Washington County Circuit Court Judge Andrew Wilkinson was shot dead in his Maryland driveway by a defendant who had lost custody of his children at a hearing over which Wilkinson had presided.
Zayas said that online threats, including “violent and harassing messages,” against judges have more than doubled in the past few years.
The internet security expert warned the rise in online threats and doxing arrived after Trump, Musk and many key figures in Trump’s administration ratcheted up the rhetoric against judges who challenge their sweeping federal cuts, layoffs and immigration deportations.
Musk even called another judge “evil” and said he “must be fired” after he ruled that the administration must restore public health data that was removed from government websites.
“We have seen these types of behavior patterns before, and they are tied to three things: prominent attacks against jurists and individuals by high-profile personalities; a feeling among lay people that the judiciary is impeding the will of the people; and the availability of personal information attainable on the Internet,” Zayas said.
“The easier it is to search someone’s address on the Internet, the more streamlined it becomes to attack them personally, including their families.”
Zayas warned that such attacks can have a chilling effect on an independent judiciary, a free press and the open exchange of ideas.
“If individuals feel that, in addition to the risks they take in their occupation, they and their families can be targeted — especially at home — people will withdraw and even self-censure,” he said. “This is on top of the already large amount of cyber and ransomware attacks that are on the rise because of breaches of personal information. We definitely see ourselves providing a service that protects the fundamentals of a republic.
“Having your information out there makes you a more likely victim of scams and in some cases a target for violence. In today’s very polarized society, one wrong comment on an online forum, or even just serving on a jury or participating in a peace protest, can make you a target for people who don’t agree with you.”
What Is Doxing?
Doxing refers to the act of publicly revealing or publishing private, personal information about an individual without their consent. This can include things like their full name, address, phone number, email address, workplace or other sensitive details. Doxing is often done with malicious intent, to harass, intimidate or cause harm to the person being targeted.
It’s a serious violation of privacy and can lead to real-world consequences, including identity theft, physical harm or harassment. In many places, doxing is considered illegal and can result in criminal charges.
What People Are Saying
Paul Grimm, retired U.S. district judge and the director of Bolch Judicial Institute at Duke Law School, said in an open letter to fellow legal experts: “While the arguments for and against DOGE access to this information will continue to be debated in court and around the country, Judge Engelmayer has quickly become a target of unfair, unwarranted threats and attacks lobbed via social media and news outlets across the country. Such attacks must be met with a coordinated response. Even as we continue to learn the facts of this specific lawsuit, there are two things we must immediately stand up and defend: judges who are doing their job to the best of their ability in quickly evolving situations, and the ability of the courts to fulfill their role to interpret and apply the law without fear or favor.”
After Engelmayer’s ruling, Musk wrote on social media: “I’d like to propose that the worst 1 percent of appointed judges, as determined by elected bodies, be fired every year. This will weed out the most corrupt and least competent.”
In his decision, Engelmayer wrote: “That is both because of the risk that the new policy presents of the disclosure of sensitive and confidential information and the heightened risk that the systems in question will be more vulnerable than before to hacking.”
Darcee Siegel, delegate from the Government and Public Sector Lawyers Division, said earlier this month: “We should not have to live in fear. Violence and threats of violence are taking a toll on our institutions and our civil servants.”
What Happens Next
Republican Representative Eli Crane has threatened to file articles of impeachment against Engelmayer, claiming judicial overreach.
The post Doxing on Rise After Info Leaks About Judge in DOGE Case: Privacy Expert appeared first on Newsweek.
