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As of early 2026, the Trump administration is actively investigating and cracking down on what it terms "fraud, waste, and abuse" in federal benefit programs, including old-age benefits.
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Key aspects of this ongoing effort include:
Targeting Old-Age Benefits: In March 2025, President Trump highlighted efforts to identify where payments for Social Security members listed as over 100 years old are going, aiming to cut alleged fraud.
Executive Actions: In March 2025, an Executive Order was signed to eliminate information silos and improve the Treasury's ability to screen for fraud and improper payments.
DOGE Involvement: Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are involved in identifying wasteful spending, which has led to referrals to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
National Fraud Enforcement Division: In January 2026, Vice President JD Vance announced a new DOJ division dedicated to national fraud enforcement, part of a "whole-of-government" effort to eliminate fraud in federal benefit programs.
SSA Focus: The Social Security Administration (SSA) is acting on a memorandum to investigate earnings reports of people 100 or older with mismatched records and to prevent ineligible individuals from receiving benefits.
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However, these efforts have faced scrutiny. Critics have questioned the scale of the alleged fraud, with a 2025 analysis citing that SSA payment accuracy is over 99 percent and that anti-fraud measures have caused delays and failed to find significant fraudulent claims. There are also reports of scrutiny over the data-sharing methods used by DOGE and concerns from Democrats that these investigations are a form of political retaliation
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