US border authority seeks travellers' social media details

Customs and Border Protection, within the Department of Homeland Security, would like to ask travellers for their social media details

Travellers seeking visa waiver entry to the US may soon be asked to list their social media profiles - if a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposal is enacted.

An update to application forms would ask users to identify what social networks they use and their "social media identifier" such as a username. However, revealing this information would be "optional".


The changes would affect Esta and Form I-94W applications. The proposal was added to the Federal Register by Customs and Border Protection (CBP), part of the DHS, last Thursday.

Any data travellers choose to share will be used "for vetting purposes, as well as applicant contact information", the proposal states. Public comment - which must be submitted by post - will be sought for 60 days before the CBP considers it further.