DOGE Has Its Sights Set on US Computer Systems. Oh Boy.
From what we have seen, Elon Musk can’t be trusted to rewrite the code that underpins some of the government’s most critical operations.
Just how old are the US government’s computer systems?
Photographer: Authenticated News/Getty Images
Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency has set its sight on one of the most enduring technologies: The Common Business Oriented Language, better known as COBOL.
First developed in the 1950s and ‘60s, the coding language still underpins some of the American government’s most critical systems, including at the Social Security Administration, Internal Revenue Service, Office of Personnel Management and several more. It’s also behind critical private infrastructure, such as banking and air travel. It’s survived not because it’s remarkably good at what we need it to do but also because replacing it with something more contemporary has proven extremely complex and expensive.