US embassy begins screening social media handles to detect potential security threats
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
All applicants for F, M, and J nonimmigrant visas in Nigeria must now adjust their social media handle privacy settings to “public”, the United States embassy has announced, to facilitate scrutinising potential threats to Yankee country and views critical of the government and Americans.
The order, given by President Donald Trump, applies to visa applicants worldwide.
F, M, and J visas are nonimmigrant visa categories for individuals going to the US for educational, visiting, and exchange purposes.
The embassy said applicants in those categories should set their personal social media profiles to public, as part of a new visa requirement.
“Effective immediately, all individuals applying for an F, M, or J nonimmigrant visa are requested to adjust the privacy settings on all of their personal social media accounts to ‘public,’” the embassy posted on X.
“We use all available information in our visa screening and vetting to identify visa applicants who are inadmissible to the United States, including those who pose a threat to US national security.”
The US government had insisted last month that its visa “is a privilege, not a right.”
The US Department of State on June 18 published on its website that under the new guidance, “we will conduct a comprehensive and thorough vetting, including online presence, of all student and exchange visitor applicants in the F, M, and J nonimmigrant classifications.
“To facilitate this vetting, all applicants for F, M, and J nonimmigrant visas will be instructed to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to ‘public.’
“Every visa adjudication is a national security decision.
“The United States must be vigilant during the visa-issuance process to ensure that those applying for admission into the United States do not intend to harm Americans and our national interests and that all applicants credibly establish their eligibility for the visa sought, including that they intend to engage in activities consistent with the terms for their admission.”
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