The U.S. Department of Homeland Security plans to request information from immigrants as to their social media accounts and activities over the last five (5) years. DHS published a notice in the Federal Register of its plans.
DHS’s stated goal is to gather information on immigrants to determine whether they pose a law enforcement or national security risk to the United States. In practice, many are concerned that this will be yet one more discretionary tool that immigration officers can use to deny otherwise qualified applicants and impinge on the right of free speech. This has already begun happening at the consular level, and Customs and Border Protection has already faced accusations of using social media as a pretext for denying qualified immigrants and nonimmigrants entry into the United States.