Trump could introduce 'mandatory' social media reviews for travelers

"The Trump administration could soon require tourists from dozens of nations to hand over their social media handles before entering the country. Under a proposal from US Customs and Border Protection, the agency would make social media history from the past five years a "mandatory" part of the screening process, as reported earlier by The New York Times. Right now, travelers from 42 countries - including Australia, France, Germany, Japan, and the UK - can visit the US for up to 90 days without a visa."

"The proposal comes as President Donald Trump continues to clamp down on immigration. In March, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services proposed reviewing the social media accounts of people applying for green cards, US citizenship, as well as asylum and refugee status. Meanwhile, the State Department started asking visa applicants to make their social media accounts public in June."

The Trump administration could require tourists from 42 visa-waiver countries, including Australia, France, Germany, Japan, and the UK, to provide social media handles and five years of social media history when applying through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). US Customs and Border Protection would make social media history mandatory in the screening process. The proposal aligns with other measures expanding social-media scrutiny: US Citizenship and Immigration Services proposed reviewing accounts for green-card, citizenship, asylum, and refugee applicants in March, and the State Department began asking visa applicants to make accounts public in June.

Read at The Verge