It is true that improper payments have been made—including some to dead people—but the claims thrown out by Elon Musk and Donald Trump are overstated.

Attempts by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to seek access to the Social Security Administration’s database have sparked concern that it could compromise people’s private financial and medical information and could lead to a disruption in benefits.

Roughly 18.4 million Americans with Social Security numbers in a master database had not received benefits or reported income for 50 years, meaning they were likely dead, per a 2023 audit.