By Tami Luhby and Kaanita Iyer, CNN

(CNN) — Last week, Leland Dudek, a mid-level career employee at the Social Security Administration, posted on LinkedIn that he was placed on administrative leave for cooperating with Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency and asked for help finding another job.

Days later, courtesy of President Donald Trump, he had one: Social Security’s acting commissioner.

He replaced Michelle King, an agency staffer with decades of experience who resigned last weekend after tussling with DOGE representatives over access to Social Security’s sensitive records. She is one of several high-ranking career officials across the federal government who have departed over concerns about DOGE staffers’ potential access to federal databases with Americans’ private information, which has also sparked lawsuits.

By contrast, Dudek, who joined Social Security in 2009 and worked in its anti-fraud office, acknowledged in the now-deleted LinkedIn post that he had worked with DOGE.

“I confess. I helped DOGE understand SSA. I mailed myself publically accessible documents and explained them DOGE,” he wrote in the post, which CNN viewed. “I confess. I moved contractor money around to add data science resources to my anti-fraud team to examine Direct Deposit Fraud.”

“I confess. I bullied agency executives, shared executive contact information, and circumvented the chain of command to connect DOGE with the people who get stuff done,” he posted.

In a separate job-seeking post, Dudek told potential new employers, “I can be your ‘sherpa’, helping you navigate government, and in creating lasting relationships that get to yes.” He noted he was looking for roles in fraud and identity management, as well as cybersecurity.

While Trump’s nominee to lead the agency, Frank Bisignano, awaits Senate confirmation, Dudek temporarily inherits the responsibility of overseeing the monthly benefits that more than 70 million retirees, disabled workers, survivors and dependents rely on.

The Social Security Administration did not return a request for comment.

DOGE’s influence

Dudek’s promotion appears to be another striking example of DOGE’s influence over the federal government, as Trump has empowered Musk.

The tech billionaire celebrated Dudek’s elevation Wednesday, saying, “Promote good players, exit bad players. That’s the right thing to do.”

“Amazingly, Leland was fired by Social Security Administration upper management for helping @DOGE find taxpayer savings. Can you believe that??” Musk posted on X. “Thanks to President Trump, Leland was brought back right away and now HE is upper management.”

DOGE infiltration of federal agencies has raised concerns among lawmakers that it is circumventing thelegislative process and government checks and balances.

Dudek’s elevation prompted Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee; Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer; and three other Democratic senators to send the acting commissioner a letter asking what information he provided to DOGE and what access its representatives have received.

The senators also expressed concern about Dudek having no executive experience and about reports that he had been put on administrative leave pending an investigation into his sharing sensitive information with DOGE.

DOGE’s gaining access to Social Security’s data, which contains reams of personal information on hundreds of millions of Americans, has also raised red flags among experts and consumer advocates.

“The information collected and securely held by the Social Security Administration is highly sensitive,” Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, said in a statement earlier this week. “SSA has data on everyone who has a Social Security number, which is virtually all Americans, everyone who has Medicare, and every low-income American who has applied for Social Security’s means-tested companion program, Supplemental Security Income.”

Dudek sought to allay some concerns on Wednesday, saying in a statement, “DOGE personnel CANNOT make changes to agency systems, benefit payments, or other information. They only have READ access.” He also noted that the DOGE team cannot access data related to a court-ordered temporary restraining order, current or future.

He also aimed to set the record straight on whether Social Security has been sending checks to dead people, which Trump and Musk have both recently implied in recent days.

Dudek noted that there are people older than 100 who do not have a date of death associated with their record, but they are not necessarily receiving benefits.

Stressing the importance of transparency, Dudek said he called the agency’s Office of the Inspector General to give them an opportunity to oversee and review all activities, including his own actions. He also invited the independent Government Accountability Office to observe the agency’s operations.

Focusing on fraud

The acting commissioner is already taking steps to overhaul the agency in line with Trump and Musk’s focus on rooting out fraud and waste in the federal government.

On Friday, Dudek announced an organizational change aimed at improving operations and strengthening protections.

The realignment involves moving the functions provided by the agency’s Office of Analytics, Review and Oversight to existing parts of the agency to “speed the opportunities to identify fraud, waste, and abuse and implement needed solutions,” among other benefits, the agency said in a press release.

The move is “an important, common-sense step in the right direction to further strengthen the integrity of the Social Security and Supplemental Security Income programs millions of people depend on,” Dudek said in the release.

Noting that “Dudek understands that government alone doesn’t have all the answers,” the agency will engage with a range of stakeholders on protecting the integrity of its programs and identifying opportunities to increase efficiency, including through technology and program simplification.

“These improvements will build on recommendations that DOGE team members provide the agency and help to improve how Social Security serves America,” the news release said.

CNN’s Kaanita Iyer contributed to this report.

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