Visa ineligibilities are set forth in U.S. This information will be used for identity resolution and to determine whether the applicant is eligible for a U.S. The collection of social media identifiers is consistent with this. Is this just a way to profile individuals by their religion, political views, or race?Ĭonsular officers cannot deny visas based on applicants’ race, religion, ethnicity, national origin, political views, gender, or sexual orientation. A set of FAQs issued by DOS over a year ago attempted to address these concerns: While DOS could search the internet and social media channels for public information concerning visa applicants and use that information to validate applications or raise additional questions as appropriate, the information obtained from DS-160 and DS-260 Forms dramatically facilitate those efforts.
How broadly is the DOS sharing this information with other government agencies and even foreign governments?ĭespite claims of being part of the vetting process, concerns about privacy and misuse of information remain.Is the DOS looking for evidence of political organizing or affiliation with various political or social groups?.Is DOS looking for clues about possible criminal activities (such as substance abuse) or health-related issues (such as alcoholism)?.Will the DOS deny cases based upon perceptions of the applicant’s views as expressed on social media?.Many questions have been raised about how this information will be used.
With this new information, the DOS, in real time, will have a detailed picture of the applicants’ views and associations. The forms also ask, “Do you wish to provide information about your presence on any other websites or applications you have used within the last five years to create or share content (photos, videos, status updates, etc.)?” Although that question appears to be optional, a “No” answer appears to show up as a “No” to the question, not a “No” to the option - further complicating responses. Two common DOS forms, the DS-160 (Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application) and DS-260 (Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration), require applicants to identify and provide user names for any of approximately 20 social media accounts (including the most popular ones) that they have used in preceding five years. The DOS’s collection and maintenance of this information is the subject of a lawsuit. The Department of State (DOS) has been collecting (and maintaining) information on social media use from all visa applicants (immigrant and non-immigrant) since June 2019.
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