John Solly, a software engineer and former member of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), is the DOGE operative reportedly accused in a whistleblower complaint of telling colleagues that he stored sensitive Social Security Administration (SSA) data on a thumb drive and wanted to share the information with his new employer, multiple sources tell WIRED.
Since October, according to a copy of his résumé, Solly has worked as the chief technology officer for the health IT division of a government contractor called Leidos, which has already received millions in SSA contracts and could receive up to $1.5 billion in contracts with SSA based on a five-year deal it signed in 2023. Solly’s personal website and LinkedIn have been taken offline as of this week.
Responding to a request for comment, Solly, through his legal counsel, denied engaging in any wrongdoing. A spokesperson for Leidos also said the company found no evidence supporting the whistleblower’s claims against Solly.
Solly was one of 12 DOGE team members at SSA, where, according to the résumé on his personal website, he supported “other DOGE engineers on initiatives including Digital SSN, Death Master File cleanup,” and “SSN verification API (EDEN 2.0).” The “death master file” is an SSA database containing millions of Social Security records of deceased people and is maintained so that their identities can’t be used for fraud. An API, or application programming interface, allows different programs to talk to each other, including pulling data and information from each other. In this case, it could allow Social Security data to be accessed by agencies and institutions outside of SSA.
The allegation was revealed in a complaint filed to SSA’s internal watchdog first reported earlier this week by The Washington Post, which did not name Solly or Leidos. According to the Post, the complaint was filed with the SSA’s Office of the Inspector General earlier this year and alleges that the former DOGE employee told coworkers he took copies of the SSA’s Numerical Identification System, or NUMIDENT, as well as the “death master file.” NUMIDENT is a master SSA database containing all information included in a Social Security number application, including full names, birth dates, race, and more personally identifiable information.
In the complaint, according to the Post, a whistleblower alleges that the former DOGE employee sought help transferring a set of data from a thumb drive to a personal computer so he could “sanitize” it before uploading it for use at a private-sector company. The former DOGE employee allegedly said that he expected to receive a presidential pardon if his actions were unlawful, the complaint reportedly stated.
Solly “did not share, access, or view any personally identifiable information (PII) maintained by SSA, including SSA’s Death Master File (DMF) and Numerical Identification System (Numident). The allegations made by a supposedly anonymous source are patently false and slanderous. Mr. Solly will take all appropriate steps to clear his good name and stellar reputation,” says Seth Waxman, who is representing Solly. “He is certain that any fair review of the facts and circumstances surrounding these spurious allegations will fully exonerate him.”
Leidos is a major contractor for SSA. Between 2010 and 2018, the company brought in millions of dollars in SSA IT contracts. In 2018, Leidos was awarded contracts potentially worth up to $639 million for IT support services and processing disability claims. In 2023, the company announced that it had been awarded an estimated $1.5 billion IT contract with the agency. As part of DOGE’s blitz into the US government in early 2025, Leidos, like many government contractors, saw some of its contracts cut.
Source: www.wired.com
