US could ask tourists for five-year social media history before entry

General News
21

I neglected to mention about people who have some need to live in or visit the US. I feel sorry for them.

I too wondered what is new about this most recent social media history requirement. I thought Trump 1.0 “extreme vetting” required visa applicants to disclose their social media handles.

22

I suspect that with the Democrats in power, this hype about the compromising Palantir database will become obsolete. Perhaps new AI mind-reading techniques will emerge that aren’t so vulgar.

23

Don’t count on it, after Bush’s presidency, Obama also deported many people (though I’m sure his admin deported only illegals not like the current admin). Also, several of the policies were still not overturned by Biden during his presidency.

We’ll just have to wait and see what happens and how. Follow the fine print, and like Deepthroat said, follow the money.

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24

This has been doing the rounds on the fediverse today. I don’t think there has been a new development but the February 9 deadline for feedback is getting closer, so I had another look at the official notice. Some details that may have been missed in the general discussion here and elsewhere:

  • This proposed new rule applies to travellers who only need an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), that is, travellers from “low-risk” countries in the Visa Waiver Program.
  • The ESTA website where we could apply for the authorisation will be decommissioned and replaced by a mandatory “ESTA Mobile” app.
  • In addition to mandatory social media info, here’s a non-exclusive list of new “high-value” data that could be added to the application form:
    a. Telephone numbers used in the last five years;
    b. Email addresses used in the last ten years;
    c. IP addresses and metadata from electronically submitted photos;
    d. Family member names (parents, spouse, siblings, children);
    e. Family number telephone numbers used in the last five years;
    f. Family member dates of birth;
    g. Family member places of birth;
    h. Family member residencies;
    i. Biometrics--face, fingerprint, DNA, and iris;
    j. Business telephone numbers used in the last five years;
    k. Business email addresses used in the last ten years.

I had already resigned myself to not travelling to or through the US for the foreseeable future, but now I may have to consider warning my immediate family members not to travel there either.

25

Members of my family are none of their concern and I’d be furious if someone gave them MY phone number or address. This is irrelevant to border control. I can see the arguments in favour of it but that doesn’t make it any easier to accept.

I share DNA with my siblings so that isn’t acceptable either but several family members have already given up our DNA.

Does this site count as social media?

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26

I think if your account here is anonymous you could just not report it to them

27

And what is an old grandma ?

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???

29

Just a matter of perspective … was an elbow in the ribs …

in this blue zone, regular BD greetings from local broadcast 4d/7d there is at least 1 or 2, 100 year olds !

30

Yes, it does. Forums and blogs are social media.

I have a friend in Italy who was travelling to the US, and she had to share her social media.
She only shared her Facebook, and was allowed to travel, even though she is present on other platforms.

If I had to guess, if you only share one social media account, and it’s from a very niche platform, it could come across as suspicious. For example, suppose you are part of gardening forum, and you share your username with the US. Will they take you seriously? Especially when you consider that most forums require that you have an account to see what people are saying there.

Or what if you only share your Mastodon?

This sucks. Would love to heard about the experience of other people who went through this.

31

Why are we not asking Muricans the very same thing when they enter EU zone, especially diplomats, senate members, anyone working for the government? Why they can get away with asking those intrusive things without any consequences? and here in Germany, you can’t even report a false parking car if you don’t blur driver’s face.

32

All sanction’s or regulations that they apply towards us, should be mirrored towards them.

33

This is something I have heard before, and I understand the logic. However, I am not convinced it is possible or even effective because every country doesn’t have the same leverage, and America is the most powerful country in the world. If most countries in the world wanted to reciprocate, the US could use any leverage they have against them to deter them from doing so. Some European countries have threatened to deny more visas from certain countries if that country didn’t do what they wanted. Basically, whoever is the most powerful will win this stupid game, and innocent people will suffer as a result. Hence, I’m not convinced this is the right solution in the long term. There is also the fact that the EU does the exact same thing to other countries.

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34

I’ve previously had to travel through a US aligned country that also runs an aggressive surveillance state. I ended up just going in with a burner phone and insisting I didn’t use social media, it frustrated the person interrogating me, but there wasn’t enough for them to go on to reject my entry into the country.

35

Not having an online presence will be considered a massive red flag in the near future. People, employers, and countries probably won’t trust you and will wonder what kind of vile acts you may have committed that led you to not have social media accounts everywhere. You won’t be able to find jobs, friends, or form a family because you will be seen as an outlier who is scared and has something to hide.

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