The US is planning to start collecting the social media history of those applying for visas to enter the States.
The proposal from the state departments would require applicants to give details of their Facebook and Twitter accounts and they would have to disclose all social media identities used in the past five years.
It is expected that about 14.7 million people a year would be affected, but it would not hit nationals of the UK and other countries to which the US grants visa-free travel.
The information would be used to identify and vet those seeking both immigrant and non-immigrant visas. Applicants would also be asked for any telephone numbers and email addresses they’ve had in the previous five years and they would have to disclose their travel history.
Previously this data was only required when applicants were singled out for extra scrutiny based on criteria such as previous travel history in high risk regions.
The government is seeking public comment on the proposed new requirements.
Officials defended the proposal by saying it would help to identify potential extremists.
However, the American Civil Liberties Union has expressed its opposition and described it as a backdoor route to an indiscriminate Muslim travel ban.
"People will now have to wonder if what they say online will be misconstrued or misunderstood by a government official. We’re also concerned about how the Trump administration defines the vague and over-broad term ‘terrorist activities’ because it is inherently political and can be used to discriminate against immigrants who have done nothing wrong," said Hina Shamsi, director of ACLU’s National Security Project.
"There is a real risk that social media vetting will unfairly target immigrants and travelers from Muslim majority countries for discriminatory visa denials."
