Us Expanding Social Media Surveillance Of Foreigners May Impact Citizens

The U.S. authorities is broadening its surveillance of societal media platforms to show millions of immigrants and overseas visitors, pinch caller devices that could perchance scrutinize U.S. citizens arsenic well. This effort includes expanded usage of information analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) to measure applicants for visas, asylum and citizenship.

How has this changed nan visa exertion process?

Since 2019, applicants for some migrant and non-immigrant U.S. visas — astir 14 cardinal group annually — person been required to taxable their societal media relationship information. The Trump management is now expanding this believe pinch nan take of AI devices to emblem concerns erstwhile screening accounts. This has included initiatives specified arsenic “Catch and Revoke,” successful which nan State Department reportedly utilized AI to target student visa holders who posted pro-Palestinian views.

While nan State Department has declined to remark connected nan circumstantial technologies successful use, a spokesperson stated nan national agency will employment “all disposable devices to person and reappraisal concerning information.” Visa revocations whitethorn besides hap based connected arrests, criminal activity, aliases behaviour deemed inconsistent pinch nan visa classification.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), an agency wrong nan Department of Homeland Security (DHS), precocious announced it would beryllium treating antisemitic societal media activity arsenic grounds to contradict migration benefits. The USCIS has besides proposed collecting societal media usernames from applicants seeking asylum, naturalization, aliases different migration benefits — a argumentation that could effect millions.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) uses a strategy called SocialNet, developed by ShadowDragon, which aggregates information from complete 200 platforms including awesome societal networks, making love apps, and moreover gaming sites. ShadowDragon states its devices do not usage AI and are designed only to cod nationalist data, leaving mentation to quality users.

More than 11,000 ICE agents besides reportedly use LexisNexis Risk Solutions exertion for screening and targeting individuals for deportation. A spokesperson for nan institution said its services purpose to heighten nationalist information and person supported authorities efforts crossed aggregate administrations.

Meanwhile, nan DHS’s April 2025 AI inventory update confirmed that U.S. Customs and Border Protection is utilizing an AI instrumentality called Babel X to cod nationalist societal media and open-source information for screening travelers.

Could this surveillance impact U.S. citizens?

Legal experts propose nan policy’s scope could widen to U.S. citizens indirectly. For example, individuals applying for imperishable residency must supply societal media accusation not only for themselves but for contiguous family members, who whitethorn beryllium citizens. 

What happens next?

The nationalist remark play connected USCIS’s projected argumentation regarding societal media information postulation for migration applicants closed connected May 5.