Trump’s Order Prompts Expanded Immigration Social Media Checks/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ J. Mansour/ U.S. immigration authorities have proposed expanding social media data collection for green card and citizenship applicants. The move, tied to a Trump executive order, is raising alarms among civil rights groups over privacy, free speech, and government overreach. The public has until May 5 to comment.
Trump Order Spurs Plan for Immigration Social Media Monitoring – Quick Look
- What’s New: DHS plans to collect social media handles from applicants for green cards, citizenship, and asylum.
- Why It’s Happening: The move fulfills Trump’s executive order on national security and vetting.
- Who It Affects: Around 3.6 million people applying for immigration benefits, many already legally in the U.S.
- Concerns Raised: Critics fear chilling effects on free speech and misuse of social media data.
- Current Practices: Social media vetting began under Obama and expanded during Trump’s first term.
- AI Role: Artificial intelligence may assist with screening but is still unreliable for nuanced decisions.
- Public Feedback Deadline: Comments on the proposal are open until May 5, 2025.
Deep Look: U.S. Immigration Officials Aim to Expand Social Media Data Collection
SAN FRANCISCO — The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is proposing to broaden its collection of social media information from immigrants applying for green cards, asylum, or U.S. citizenship — triggering criticism from civil liberties groups who warn the policy could violate privacy and suppress free speech.
The new rule stems from an executive order signed by President Donald Trump titled “Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats.” The policy calls for enhanced vetting of applicants through “uniform vetting standards” that include collecting social media handles and platform names — though not passwords — to screen for security threats.
Currently open for public comment until May 5, the proposal could affect approximately 3.6 million immigration applicants annually, many of whom are already living in the U.S. legally.
Who Will Be Affected?
Unlike previous policies, which primarily targeted visa applicants abroad, this expanded plan would also apply to people who are already inside the U.S. and have undergone extensive background checks — such as asylum seekers and long-term residents applying for permanent residency or citizenship.
“This is a significantly expanded surveillance effort,” said Rachel Levinson-Waldman of NYU’s Brennan Center for Justice. “It includes people who’ve already been vetted, and it allows the government to use social media activity to make very high-stakes immigration decisions.”
The change builds on more than a decade of social media screening. It began under President Obama and was significantly ramped up during Trump’s first term. In 2019, the State Department began collecting social media data from nearly all visa applicants — roughly 15 million people annually.
What’s the Justification?
In a statement, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said the proposal is intended to “strengthen fraud detection, prevent identity theft, and support the enforcement of rigorous screening and vetting measures to the fullest extent possible.”
“These efforts ensure that those seeking immigration benefits…do not threaten public safety, undermine national security, or promote harmful anti-American ideologies,” the statement said.
The Role of AI in Vetting
As part of the surveillance expansion, experts believe artificial intelligence (AI) tools could be used to assist in analyzing millions of social media accounts. But many warn of serious limitations.
Leon Rodriguez, former USCIS Director and now an immigration attorney, cautioned that AI may flag posts without proper context.
“AI isn’t yet capable of replacing the judgment of trained human analysts,” he said. “It may miss critical nuance, or flag innocent content as a threat based on poorly defined search parameters.”
Free Speech & Privacy Risks
Civil rights advocates are particularly alarmed by the implications for First Amendment protections — especially given the Trump administration’s recent moves to revoke student visas and detain protestors accused of supporting Hamas or engaging in “anti-American” speech.
“Social media is a messy, often misunderstood space,” said Levinson-Waldman. “Using it to make life-altering immigration decisions is dangerous and deeply flawed.”
Critics say that immigrants — even those already inside the country — still enjoy First Amendment protections. Government surveillance based on political beliefs or speech may lead to overreach, especially if used to justify visa denials, deportations, or denaturalization.
“It’s incredibly hard to determine tone, sarcasm, or context from a post,” said Levinson-Waldman. “That alone makes using social media as a vetting tool problematic.”
Legal Foundation and History
The practice of monitoring immigrants’ social media was formalized in 2017, when the State Department issued emergency rules to increase vetting. Critics at the time — including the Brennan Center and the ACLU — warned that the practice was discriminatory, especially toward Muslim applicants, and posed risks to civil liberties.
Since then, the Trump administration has consistently expanded immigration-related surveillance, and this latest move underlines a renewed push to use digital data in the immigration system.
What’s Next?
Public comments on the proposal can be submitted to regulations.gov until May 5, 2025. Immigration experts and civil liberties organizations are already preparing legal challenges and lobbying for the rule to be scaled back or abandoned entirely.
“This isn’t just about immigration,” said David Becker, director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research. “It’s about the precedent we’re setting for how the government interacts with speech online.”
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