9 ms·

Pretty absurd that they're asking for all of this and: > [...] In addition to their social media histories, visa applicants will be asked for five years of pre

Pretty absurd that they're asking for all of this and: > [...] In addition to their social media histories, visa applicants will be asked for five years of previously used telephone numbers, email addresses, international travel and deportation status, as well as whether any family members have been involved in terrorist activities. I know a number of people going through, or have been through, the US visa process and surely if this is required, applicants are going to drop. Furthermore, if you submit that you don't have a social media account are they going to assume you're a liar? Are applicants just going to create new "real" accounts just to avoid looking suspicious?

maxerickson 9y ago
You don't have to be all that cynical to think that the whole idea is to get people to drop their applications.
fibers 9y ago
>I know a number of people going through, or have been through, the US visa process and surely if this is required, applicants are going to drop. That's the point that the administration wants to push.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
Swizec 9y ago
> visa applicants will be asked for five years of previously used telephone numbers, email addresses, international travel and deportation status, This has already been the case for at least 4 years. Every visa I’ve ever had asked me to fill out which countries I’ve visited in the past 5 years and whether I was ever deported.
- fibers 9y ago
  That is significantly different than disclosing social media profiles and different emails. One (filling out travel information) makes sense because...uhhhh...you're crossing another border so it makes sense to disclose previous travel history that coincides with your stamp book on your passport. The other is uhhhh irrelevant to travel information?
  - Swizec 9y ago
    I agree, just pointing out that this isn’t new. GP comment implicated that it is.
    - forapurpose 9y ago
      It is new, based on what your comment. You reported answering different questions.
      - curiousgal 9y ago
        He was replying to the "international travel and deportation status" portion.
        anigbrowl 9y ago
        Editing for context avoids such misunderstandings.
paulgb 9y ago
A more hidden effect of this is the chilling effect of this on what would-be immigrants post on social media. E.g. should I remove a photo from the Women's March because it was seen by some as a protest against the current administration?
- dmode 9y ago
  I actually went back and deleted all my “controversial” social media posts while I was applying for a visa transfer. This was even before this policy announcement. I don’t put it past vindicative people in the administration to causally check out social media posts while adjucating petitions
  - inetknght 9y ago
    "deleted" I don't think this word means what you think it means in today's internet.
- lopmotr 9y ago
  This has already happened in New Zealand. If you've ever publicly made controversial statements ("have ever publically made a racist statement" [1]), they can deny you a resident visa unless they arbitrarily decide it's OK. You might think you're not a racist, but in the UK, racism law extends to criticizing Islam or even questioning aspects of it. So you better not be an outspoken atheist either. [1] https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-a-visa/tools-and-information/character-and-identity/good-character-residence https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-...
  - _acme 9y ago
    Unless NZ is significantly different from most other countries, no one has a right to a resident visa (although some people might have a right to citizenship, such as by descent), so they can already arbitrarily determine whether or not to grant a resident visa.
    - 9y ago
chx 9y ago
> five years of previously used telephone numbers, I couldn't tell even if I wanted to, I go somewhere, pick up a SIM card, trash it when I leave. These days many countries sell them from machines or newsstands at the airport, this is not unusual any more. Japan and the UK, both from 2015: https://cdn.techinasia.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Screen-Shot-2015-04-03-at-13.48.01.png https://cdn.techinasia.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Screen... http://travelpal.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/08095335/Simcard_Vending_Machine.jpg http://travelpal.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploa... and actually even the USA, this is JFK: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CX0y79EWQAAGlfZ.jpg https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CX0y79EWQAAGlfZ.jpg
- maerF0x0 9y ago
  odds are if you used it for such a short time they wouldnt know either. And it'd be odd if they say "You failed to disclose 555-555-5555" (ok... but you clearly know the number)
  - dragonwriter 9y ago
    > And it'd be odd if they say "You failed to disclose 555-555-5555" (ok... but you clearly know the number) It would not be at all odd for them to use failure to disclose as a reason for revoking your visa and putting you on a list of people who would be denied entry in the future, and it would be unsurprising if, before kicking you out, they also criminally prosecuted you for lying to the government.
  - saagarjha 9y ago
    It’s easy to twist that into “you clearly failed to disclose this number because you have something to hide”.
- freehunter 9y ago
  I have the same problem with my employer's background checks... I'm often required to list 7 years of home addresses, and while I'm not quite a digital nomad and have never been homeless, I have moved quite a few times in the past 7 years. Sometimes to places without a permanent address, sometimes spending a few months with friends. Sometimes in states I didn't technically work in, which makes questions about discrepancies really fun. Hell if I can remember all of them. Sometimes I've been known to put down addresses I never officially lived at because I couldn't remember if I ever put in a change of address form or not.
fernandotakai 9y ago
> Furthermore, if you submit that you don't have a social media account are they going to assume you're a liar? something like that already happened to me. i was coming into the us as a tourist (and i was a tourist, i was visiting SF because i found really cheap tickets and a cheap airbnb). at border control, the office starts typing at her computer, i asked her if there was something wrong. she said, and i'm not joking, that she was searching for me on facebook because "she wanted to see the reasoning for me to come and go from the us". i said i had no facebook account (i don't, i don't like facebook) and she said "it was really suspicious for me not to have a facebook account, since everybody had one".
BrainInAJar 9y ago
> surely if this is required, applicants are going to drop. That's the point.
grecy 9y ago
> visa applicants will be asked for five years of previously used telephone numbers Which I think is an interesting admission they have all the calls stored somewhere so they can check them for content...
- caf 9y ago
  More likely for who-calls-who social graphing.

maxerickson 9y ago

You don't have to be all that cynical to think that the whole idea is to get people to drop their applications.

fibers 9y ago

>I know a number of people going through, or have been through, the US visa process and surely if this is required, applicants are going to drop. That's the point that the administration wants to push.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

Swizec 9y ago

> visa applicants will be asked for five years of previously used telephone numbers, email addresses, international travel and deportation status, This has already been the case for at least 4 years. Every visa I’ve ever had asked me to fill out which countries I’ve visited in the past 5 years and whether I was ever deported.

fibers 9y ago
That is significantly different than disclosing social media profiles and different emails. One (filling out travel information) makes sense because...uhhhh...you're crossing another border so it makes sense to disclose previous travel history that coincides with your stamp book on your passport. The other is uhhhh irrelevant to travel information?
- Swizec 9y ago
  I agree, just pointing out that this isn’t new. GP comment implicated that it is.
  - forapurpose 9y ago
    It is new, based on what your comment. You reported answering different questions.
    - curiousgal 9y ago
      He was replying to the "international travel and deportation status" portion.
      - anigbrowl 9y ago
        Editing for context avoids such misunderstandings.

paulgb 9y ago

A more hidden effect of this is the chilling effect of this on what would-be immigrants post on social media. E.g. should I remove a photo from the Women's March because it was seen by some as a protest against the current administration?

dmode 9y ago
I actually went back and deleted all my “controversial” social media posts while I was applying for a visa transfer. This was even before this policy announcement. I don’t put it past vindicative people in the administration to causally check out social media posts while adjucating petitions
- inetknght 9y ago
  "deleted" I don't think this word means what you think it means in today's internet.
lopmotr 9y ago
This has already happened in New Zealand. If you've ever publicly made controversial statements ("have ever publically made a racist statement" [1]), they can deny you a resident visa unless they arbitrarily decide it's OK. You might think you're not a racist, but in the UK, racism law extends to criticizing Islam or even questioning aspects of it. So you better not be an outspoken atheist either. [1] https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-a-visa/tools-and-information/character-and-identity/good-character-residence https://www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas/apply-for-...
- _acme 9y ago
  Unless NZ is significantly different from most other countries, no one has a right to a resident visa (although some people might have a right to citizenship, such as by descent), so they can already arbitrarily determine whether or not to grant a resident visa.
  - 9y ago

chx 9y ago

> five years of previously used telephone numbers, I couldn't tell even if I wanted to, I go somewhere, pick up a SIM card, trash it when I leave. These days many countries sell them from machines or newsstands at the airport, this is not unusual any more. Japan and the UK, both from 2015: https://cdn.techinasia.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Screen-Shot-2015-04-03-at-13.48.01.png https://cdn.techinasia.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Screen... http://travelpal.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/08095335/Simcard_Vending_Machine.jpg http://travelpal.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploa... and actually even the USA, this is JFK: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CX0y79EWQAAGlfZ.jpg https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CX0y79EWQAAGlfZ.jpg

maerF0x0 9y ago
odds are if you used it for such a short time they wouldnt know either. And it'd be odd if they say "You failed to disclose 555-555-5555" (ok... but you clearly know the number)
- dragonwriter 9y ago
  > And it'd be odd if they say "You failed to disclose 555-555-5555" (ok... but you clearly know the number) It would not be at all odd for them to use failure to disclose as a reason for revoking your visa and putting you on a list of people who would be denied entry in the future, and it would be unsurprising if, before kicking you out, they also criminally prosecuted you for lying to the government.
- saagarjha 9y ago
  It’s easy to twist that into “you clearly failed to disclose this number because you have something to hide”.
freehunter 9y ago
I have the same problem with my employer's background checks... I'm often required to list 7 years of home addresses, and while I'm not quite a digital nomad and have never been homeless, I have moved quite a few times in the past 7 years. Sometimes to places without a permanent address, sometimes spending a few months with friends. Sometimes in states I didn't technically work in, which makes questions about discrepancies really fun. Hell if I can remember all of them. Sometimes I've been known to put down addresses I never officially lived at because I couldn't remember if I ever put in a change of address form or not.

fernandotakai 9y ago

> Furthermore, if you submit that you don't have a social media account are they going to assume you're a liar? something like that already happened to me. i was coming into the us as a tourist (and i was a tourist, i was visiting SF because i found really cheap tickets and a cheap airbnb). at border control, the office starts typing at her computer, i asked her if there was something wrong. she said, and i'm not joking, that she was searching for me on facebook because "she wanted to see the reasoning for me to come and go from the us". i said i had no facebook account (i don't, i don't like facebook) and she said "it was really suspicious for me not to have a facebook account, since everybody had one".

BrainInAJar 9y ago

> surely if this is required, applicants are going to drop. That's the point.

grecy 9y ago

> visa applicants will be asked for five years of previously used telephone numbers Which I think is an interesting admission they have all the calls stored somewhere so they can check them for content...

caf 9y ago
More likely for who-calls-who social graphing.