By Simon Sharwood
Publication Date: 2026-04-14 11:14:00
IBM has become the first company to settle with the US government under the Trump administration’s Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, a program aimed at ensuring diversity programs don’t cross a line and result in discrimination.
The administration defined its position on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in Executive Order 14173, issued in January 2025, which points out that US civil rights laws prevent discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The order argues that organizations that run DEI programs may “actively use dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race and sex-based preferences” in violation of civil rights laws.
The order sought to stop federal contractors from operating DEI programs. In May 2025, the administration backed the order by creating the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative to investigate allegedly illegal DEI programs and handle whistleblower complaints. The instrument for those investigations is the False Claims Act (FCA), a law that…