New US visa requires applicants for social media handles from the last 5 years

http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/336042-white-house-approves-social-media-checks-for-visa-applicants-report

by esistgut • 9 years ago

71 57 9 years ago

CM30• 9 years ago

Hmm, this is worrying. Certainly makes it less appealing to move to the US any time soon.

Though I also wonder whether you can avoid this by simply having two accounts, one with a fake name and details that the controversial stuff goes on and one with your real name that's mostly squeaky clean. How much do they research this stuff?

ocschwar• 9 years ago

Lying on these forms is what they WANT you to do.

That way they can have a pretext for nabbing you whenever convenient.

tdb78932• 9 years ago

I'm pretty sure they don't want you to lie. Arresting you and deporting you would be expensive and doesn't seem like much of a gain over just rejecting you at the border.

astrodust• 9 years ago

How much do they research this stuff?

It probably depends on how subjectively "suspicious" you seem, which is to say, how non-white you sound or look.

Something tells me actual threats Like Jeremy Christian probably won't be given a second glance.

tempay• 9 years ago

The problem then is that you've made a knowily declared false information which itself is a crime a could reasonably be used to investigate further. If you wish to visit the US these are the rules you have to accept. Personally I've decided to not attend conferences in the US or visit for the foreseeable future.

rjsw• 9 years ago

This isn't really a new problem though.

I haven't been to the US for a long time but whenever I did in the past I had to make a false declaration on the visa form, as did anyone else with strong crypto software on their laptop.

cm2187• 9 years ago

For me it is the accumulation of all these annoyances together, not each individually, which makes a trip to the US now really unappealing. Long queues for passports on arrival, long queues at the security, laptop & tablet ban (some planes are still using VCR based flight entertainment, and most movies suck), this attitude that airports, airlines and law enforcement have of ending each interaction with their customers with a threat. Now this. Some people actually like to spend their holidays in some boot camp where they will be shouted at and get their ass kicked. I myself don't enjoy that.

tdb78932• 9 years ago

You might be able to but it's probably not a good idea unless you really have bad stuff on the other account. Lying to border patrol is a great way to be detained or even rejected at the border.

razzaj• 9 years ago

What is really worrying though is the normalization of privacy devaluation. Soon the uk will follow suite and then others. And sooner than later we ll be "back" to 1984

heisenbit• 9 years ago

The US destined travel is down since October and the trend downwards is consistent. Square who should have fairly up-to-date stats recently published their stats: https://medium.com/foursquare-direct/coming-to-america-52831...

At one point these trends will be impacting main street but by then it will be too late.

lotsofpulp4• 9 years ago

It already has in NYC. Look up hotel room rates tonight for Manhattan, they're in the $150s even for full service hotels. In my experience, for a sunny summer Saturday night in Manhattan, a lot of hotels used to have minimum 2 night stay restrictions, and only Sat nights would be $300+ per night. There were tons of more rooms built, but still, demand was not expected to drop this quickly this much.

misiti3780• 9 years ago

how do you know the low rates are not the result of competition from Airbnb ?

k-mcgrady2• 9 years ago

Social media companies need to fight this. If they don't and it becomes widespread all my SM accounts will be deleted and I'm sure I won't be the only one. I'm not wasting time having two accounts or taking chances lying. I'm just going to delete the accounts. Global travel + my privacy is more important to me.

scarlac• 9 years ago

I don't like it but honestly, how would social media companies fight it?

tajen2• 9 years ago

A good donation to EFF for a freedom campaign would go a long way at coordinating the fight. And boost their image.

steve371• 9 years ago

Thank god. They don't want my HN account.

tajen2• 9 years ago

Especially our HN accounts where we say the NSA/TSA/FBI are threats to our safety (depending on context) and we use false names with burner phone-based authentication on Facebook. Honest question, I still wonder what is so bad that I'm now using the same protections as criminals, apart from hiding that I don't want to be tracked.

danieltillett2• 9 years ago

As someone who has to travel to the USA for business I welcome all this activity - it is so much more enjoyable to have the seat next to you empty when you fly. I do wonder how long the airlines can continue to fly on half load.

msl09• 9 years ago

Does this affect the process for all visas? Including tourism?

Svip4• 9 years ago

Yes. It's part of ESTA. I did not fill my social media accounts in - because I don't have any - when made an application, and to my surprise it was approved. Still a question of whether I get to enter the US next week, though.

Svip4• 9 years ago

What makes you think most people wouldn't voluntarily give over the social media accounts? It's really only people on HN that cares about that kind of privacy.

If anything, you'll get stuck with the annoying people who are proud of their social media accounts.

madeofpalk2• 9 years ago

Travel to the US is down.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-03-01/donald-trump-slump-cou...

nabla9• 9 years ago

The new questions are reportedly voluntary, but the form says that failure to provide the information may delay or prevent the processing of an individual visa application.

What I suspect will happen is that if you are European with typical European name, probably no delay if you don't report. If you are from a Muslim country, visa is denied.

This kind of thing is typical for autocratic governments. You make lots of rules and regulations that are typically not enforced. Their sole purpose is to cause difficulties for people rulers don't like. "We just follow the regulations."

rogerbraun• 9 years ago

If you are European you're probably part of the visa waiver program anyway.

danieltillett2• 9 years ago

It is on the non-visa ESTA (the visa you have when you are pretending you don't have a visa).

k-mcgrady2• 9 years ago

You still have to apply for visa waiver tho through ESTA so they can still deny you.

SSLy• 9 years ago

I am an European, and am not part of the program (I have a passport issued by Polish government.)

highprofit• 9 years ago

Is the US trying to be the most immigrant unfreindly place to discourage new immigrants and there by reduce immigration?

discombobulate• 9 years ago

Another example of bullshit from governments. Last time I said something, someone told me to slow my roll.

People's freedom is being eroded an inch at a time! (Or ~2.5 cm if you prefer the metric system).

eddyg• 9 years ago

Why is everybody blaming this on the current administration?

from June 2016:

Agency Information Collection Activities: Arrival and Departure Record (Forms I-94 and I-94W) and Electronic System for Travel Authorization [1]

Comments were accepted up until August 22, 2016 on the proposed changes.

[1] https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/06/23/2016-14...

lotsofpulp4• 9 years ago

I think it is a confluence of factors, and the continued strength of the USD compared to other currencies could certainly be playing a role in it, however, it's also true that the current federal government does not portray an inviting image to foreigners, especially of a certain demographic.

maxerickson• 9 years ago

Why is everybody blaming this on the current administration?

That doesn't seem to be especially true (so far here people are mostly discussing the details of the implementation).

In any case, the current administration is responsible for choosing to continue existing policies. That doesn't make the current administration solely responsible for the trajectory of US immigration policy, but it shares the power to change things with Congress and so will of course be a focus of criticism.

polack• 9 years ago

This was already "optional" information requested in the ESTA application since at least last year, so what's changed since? That it states more explicit that a failure to enter the information could prevent you from getting approved?

draugadrotten• 9 years ago

"Consular officials can now request all prior passport numbers, five years of social media handles, email addresses and phone numbers from applicants, as well as addresses, employment and travel history stretching back 15 years"

Heck, I don't even keep records of my old passport numbers and much less travel history stretching back 15 years. As I travel weekly or bi-weekly, the list is not easily remembered or reconstructed. Does travel include ferry, boat, car or bike rides or is it just air travel?

lotsofpulp4• 9 years ago

Everyone in the world should enable Google location history tracking, just in case they want to travel to the USA in the future.

dboreham• 9 years ago

Is it just me or does the headline fail to parse? "requires applicants for..."???

kzrdude• 9 years ago

Does this impact citizens from visa waiver countries?

Havoc2• 9 years ago

Yeah they need to fill in the ESTA forms which asks for social media. Last time I saw the form it was marked as optional though - unsure whether that part changed

Keyframe• 9 years ago

As if they don't know already? Check out Canadian immigration papers as well - same thing.

merricksb• 9 years ago

Previous discussion of Reuters story linked from this article:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14465534 (84 points, 50 comments)

hobarrera• 9 years ago

No mention of them requiring a password as well though.

I wonder what happens when I don't remember -- I deleted my facebook account over a year ago, and legitimately don't remember my handle. All I can say is that my usual username (hobarrera) was taken.

maga• 9 years ago

I don't use Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/etc, but ordinary people seldom believe it ("come on, you are a programmer, how come you don't use web?!") and often assume I don't want to share my profile with them. I'm afraid the gov agencies will take the same approach and automatically assume the absence of the social media as an attempt to hide something. Luckily in this case, though, I hope not to have to visit USA anytime soon.

New US visa requires applicants for social media handles from the last 5 years

Related Stories