From COBOL To Crisis? DOGE's Plan To Rewrite Social Security's Code In Months Sparks Fears Of Payment Disruptions

The Social Security Administration is facing a potential overhaul of its computer systems, one that could disrupt the benefits of millions of Americans who rely on these payments. The Department of Government Efficiency aims to migrate the SSA's infrastructure away from its decades-old COBOL programming language in just a few months. Experts warn that such an aggressive timeline could jeopardize the very system that supports the financial well-being of millions of people.

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What is DOGE’s Plan?

DOGE has outlined a proposal to replace the core programming of the SSA, which has been running on COBOL—a language created in the late 1950s. According to WIRED, DOGE's team is pushing to complete this transition in just a matter of months. This proposal is raising red flags across the tech community. Modernizing such a massive system is already a monumental task, but attempting to do so in such a compressed timeframe could lead to costly errors.

The Role of COBOL

Many critics of the SSA's infrastructure point to its reliance on COBOL, which, despite its age, remains a workhorse for many financial systems. According to Reuters, COBOL is still widely used to process 95% of ATM transactions worldwide. The programming language’s longevity is a testament to its stability and efficiency, particularly when handling large datasets, such as those needed to calculate and distribute Social Security benefits.

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The SSA has relied on COBOL since its creation. In 2023, the SSA distributed over $1.3 trillion in benefits to 70 million beneficiaries, showing the system’s continued ability to process payments on a large scale. Critics are concerned that replacing COBOL with a new programming language, such as Java, could pose significant risks with changes that may go unnoticed in the rush to complete the migration.

Potential for Disaster

One of the most pressing concerns is the possibility of payment errors or system outages. The SSA handles an enormous volume of financial transactions each year—840 million to be exact. Small discrepancies in calculations could result in catastrophic errors. A former SSA technologist told WIRED that COBOL processes decimal values differently than newer languages like Java, meaning that even a minor error could lead to incorrect payments for recipients, further straining an already complicated system.

Waldo Jaquith, a former government technologist, wrote in an opinion piece for MSNBC that even if the migration is technically successful, there's no guarantee that it will improve the SSA's operations. He wrote that the system is already working well enough for its intended purpose, and replacing it with a newer infrastructure may not provide any tangible benefits to the public. Some argue that the push to modernize is driven more by the desire for a flashy accomplishment than by a genuine need to improve the system.

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A Race Against Time

Experts agree that migrating such a complex system, especially in a matter of months, is fraught with danger. Jaquith compared the process to "a high-wire act without a net." The potential risks of creating unintentional failures are significant, and if DOGE's team moves forward with the project, it could put the benefits of millions of Americans in jeopardy.

Despite these warnings, DOGE seems undeterred. WIRED reports that the group has already begun recruiting a team, which includes engineers with little experience in government systems. As the migration moves forward, the question remains: Can they pull it off in time, or will they risk destabilizing a critical part of the nation's social safety net?

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